Life as Cloud
by Evenly-Baked-Avatar
Summary: You know, I had a pretty normal life. That is until I skipped dying, was reborn, and am now a clumsy bucking bronco's sister. At least I know the plot of the story, but somehow I might screw that up too. Did I mention a crazy baby hitman tutor? [NOW STARTING INHERITANCE ARC] Cover Art done by Titania.queen.of.fairys
1. Reborn! No really, reborn

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR.

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><p><strong>"She has the story, and when a person is lucky enough to live inside a story, to live inside an imaginary world, the pains of the world disappear. For as long as the story goes on, reality no longer exists."<strong>

**-Paul Auster, _The Brooklyn Follies_**

**Prolouge:**

Let me begin by pointing out the obvious fact that I am not dead. Reborn, not dead. Two very different things, I assure you, dear readers. So, let's talk about dying. Or not dying specifically, because as I stated earlier, I didn't die. However I was reborn. I'm sure you're familiar with those stories that go along the lines of "I died and am now the guardian angel of the tenth generation" or "I died and now I'm reborn in the KHR world", well you could say my story is somewhat like those, excluding the fact that I am not dead. Now, usually one dies before they are reborn. Apparently, I didn't get the memo, and juts skipped the dying part. On accident, of course. It's not like I meant to leave my family, everyone and thing I loved and my entire whole life behind on purpose. Right, family. I suppose that's a good place to start.

This whole should-really-be-dead-'cause-I'm-reborn thing started on a family hike that I happily went along on (technically, I was dragged, but I'd like to keep the mood light). The point of this trip was family bonding, yet my older brother and I didn't seem to understand the theme. You see, it would be accurate to say that we didn't exactly get along, and for someone to not get along with me, one of us would have to be trying really hard. I was quite the laid back and lazy person, someone who enjoys laying back and watching clouds more than anything. I was quite fond of this trait and people compared me to clouds a lot. I didn't mind, this only fueling my desires to be more like my favorite characters in KHR. Therefore, my brother actually having to try to get me mad, or having to know what makes me tick.

"Hey, carrot-top." And believe me, he knows. I opened my eyes, squinting at the outline of my brother against the blazing sun. I rolled to my side. Currently, we were taking a break on our hike. Of course, I had immediately plopped down on a nice, flat rock as soon as the idea was mentioned, intending to rest as much as possible. Unfortunately, thanks to my brother I didn't have that leisure.

"Go away, Pig," I mumbled halfheartedly, already jumping to the nose insult.

"Oh, come on, freckles!" He placed his foot on my side, rocking it. "I'm bored." I shook his foot off, and tried to ignore him. "You know that bright, orange hair of yours really stands out." I tried, I really did. I get points for that, right?

I shot up, irritated. He grinned triumphantly, knowing that mentioning my hair color was the trigger. "It's strawberry blonde," I hissed, standing up and crossing my arms, looking up at him. To state a fact, I have nothing against red-heads. It was just my color that I hated with an eternal loathing.

"Still looks orange to me," he retorted, and stepped forwards, causing me to step back.

"Like you have room to talk, hog." I raised my eyebrows at him. He twitched in response. In hindsight, maybe we should have noticed how close we were to edge of the small canyon. Of course, if we had been smart kiddies and done that, there wouldn't have been a story.

The way it happened was quite simply, actually. He stepped forward again. I stepped back. I was extremely confused when my foot didn't find the ground it was expecting. I only realized I was falling when my brother tried to grab me.

This was it. I was going to die. I could already see the pool of blood around me when I hit the bottom, thinking my last thoughts. Of course, it wouldn't be as cool as getting hit by a car or something like that, but I guess you can't really be picky about your death. Goodbye cruel wo- and it was about that time that I landed on a bush. For a moment, I thought that I was really dead and I just thought I was a lot fatter than I was. Then I realized I was alive.

"I'm alive!" I jumped up and yelled, only to trip when I tried to get out of the bush and fall on my face. I coughed and pushed myself up. I lifted my head and looked in front of me. I blinked. I rubbed my eyes.

There was a door. There was a very shiny, metal door at the bottom of a deserted canyon. I looked back up. When I didn't see anyone peeking over the top, I assumed my brother had freaked out and had run to get help. Deciding it was better to just stay where I was (because there was no way I was climbing that wall), I approached the door. It slid open when I got close to it. So, not only was there a door here, there was an automatic door here. I laughed loudly, holding out my arms and looking around again.

"All right, where are the cameras? Jokes over now, you got me!" Nobody answered. I frowned and dropped my arms. I shrugged and entered the door. If it was a joke, I might as well go along with it. At this point, I kind of gave up on things making sense, which was the reason why I wasn't as surprised as I should have been when I walked in and found a large circular room with a huge screen on one side with an equally huge board of buttons in front of it. Passing numerous rolling chairs scattered around the room, I went to inspect it to find a smaller screen of the side of the other one and another, tinier board with only three buttons on it. I sat in a nearby chair and looked at the smaller screen first.

I regretted this. It seemed like a monitor of some sorts that showed a very long line set in a very misty place. The people in the line, if you could still call some of them people, were the things that creeped me out. Some were covered in blood and lacking body parts. For the most part it was made up of older people. I could easily what the line was, but I really, really didn't want to think about it.

I forced my attention on the bigger screen (I'm not even going to bother with the board of buttons; too complicated for my tastes). It was simple enough. It had two options: Next soul and search souls. Grabbing the mouse nearby, I went with 'search souls', deciding to not mess with 'next soul'.

Of course, being the arrogant person I am, I search myself, my curiosity bubbling. My creeper alert went haywire when a link popped up with my picture on it (year book picture? really?). I clicked it to reveal a wiki page of sorts all with information about me. I whistled, impressed whoever made this had some serious stalking skills. A bright green option caught my eye.

_'Do you want this soul to be reborn?'_

My interest piqued I clicked on it, bringing up a page that could only be described as one of those pages you do to sign up for becoming a member of something online. The first thing that I filled out was 'what universe do want soul to be in?'. Hitting a drop-down arrow, my eyes widened in surprise when I saw different worlds such as Harry Potter, Naruto, Star Wars, and more. I smiled, immediately thinking of KHR. Oh, come on, it was my favorite series and I knew it like the back of my hand, so it was only natural for me to choose it (although One Piece was very tempting). I was surprised when I came upon the 'enter family member name' slot. I mulled other it for a while. I dismissed Tsuna; although it was my first option, I didn't want him as a brother…. I smiled and put Dino in the box. His name popped up instantly. I had always imagined him as the perfect older brother. That last thing before the end of the page was the question 'born into full awareness', which was defaulted as 'no'. Snorting, I clicked the 'yes' box instead. After looking over the page one last time to make sure I was all good, I glanced done to the smaller board which held the three button 'heaven', 'hell' and 'reborn'. I had my hand on the latter, completely ready. I hesitated.

Did I really want to leave my family behind?

Sure, my brother could be a pain, and my parents drag us around a lot, but they still love me, and it was pretty obvious that I loved them too. I mean, my brother did try to reach out and catch me when I fell (even if it was somewhat his fault that I fell, but I won't put the blame on him for that). This eternal monologue didn't last long since, well, this wasn't going to work anyway. Well, that thought and the approaching sounds of a group coming into the room.

I suddenly had the feeling that I really, really shouldn't be in here doing this. So, naturally, I panicked and hit the reborn button… only to panic even more when I looked down to see my legs disappearing. I ended up falling down when I tried to run. You know, it actually might have been better if it was painful, instead of just feeling this… nothing slowly taking over me. It was almost unbearable. As this feeling, this nothingness crept up my body, my vision started to blur. I saw shadows enter the room just before I was gone completely. Nothing. And then there was regret, agony, love, loneliness, passion, a tidal wave of emotions with no physical body to hold them back. Anger was the strongest. Anger at myself for pushing the button and just throwing away everything; family, life, happiness. I just threw all of that away like it meant nothing to me. Regret. I didn't want that, I didn't want this, but it happened. Curiosity killed the cat indeed. The feeling of nothingness passed again. It was to late for anger, for regret.

I was reborn.

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><p>So, Childbirth; not as painful as they say. Well, not for the child, at least. After all, the woman who was giving birth to me was screaming bloody murder. Oh, I should probably say my new mom. My mom in this new life, that is. I do admit, although not painful, the process of regaining and regathering a working mind was rather... unpleasant.<p>

At first, before anything, everything was blank. Void. Slowly, these things... feelings isn't exactly the right word, yet nothing else could describe it. I began to feel on an emotional level, then, physical aspects came into play. Memories, whole and unwhole, resurfaced, at first leaving me in an array of emotion and confusion. THings began to piece together, some things didn't fit. Some were forgotten, and some of those things seemed broken from the move. I have a feeling that might haunt me later.

Then, light. Warmth. In a single burst, my perspective moved on from the uncomfortable transition into my new body, something I didn't want to dwell on.

I felt my now teeny tiny body slide from the womb. Hands held me firmly and my eyes blinked open to see a very large face with a surgical mask over it. He looked down at my, erm, privates- I shut my legs immediately, feeling quite violated (despite the fact that I was a baby now). The man's mouth moved, gibbering something I couldn't understand. Oh, yeah. I was Italian now. I would have to work on that learning my 'own' language (and Japanese. I was going to Japan with Dino whether he wanted me to or not).

After wiping me off, they handed me off to my mother's awaiting arms. Despite my mind still referring to her as my 'new' mother, it worried me to see how tired and ragged she looked, and yet she still smiled at me anyway. She muttered something in Italian.

"Chiameremo Cloud. Cloud Chaivarone." I took me a bit, but I got the point of it; my name is Cloud. Huh. Weird name. She looked to her side. I followed her gaze to see another man who I could only assume was my new father. He smiled softly at me and leaned down to kiss his wife. The doctors took me out of her arms as soon as my mother started having couching fits. She eyes me longingly, but let them go.

Frankly, it was all a blur and I got bored in record time with all of their doctor-y and nurse-y procedures. I yawned and tried to go to sleep, but the nurse woke me up when she put clothes on me (don't get me wrong; I was grateful for the cover, I just valued sleep more). I eyed the teddy-bear sheets, already growing sick of them. I heard wailing next to me and assumed I was now in the nursery.

I had always enjoyed going to the nursery in my life- well, my old life. It was fun seeing all the babies, but I would never think that I would be on the other side of the glass anytime soon. I was delighted when I noticed they had put me by the window. I happily watched the passerby's looking in and cooing at us. One boy, however, caught my eye. He was looking straight at me with the curious brown eyes of an eight year old. He kept looking back up to another man behind him, mouthing something. The man nodded and smiled, causing the boy to look back at me with a wide grin on his face.

I recognized the boy as my new older brother, Dino. I smiled, recognizing the man behind him to be Romario. Seeing my smile, Dino's face grew even brighter. I guess he liked the fact that his new little sister smiled after seeing her big brother for the first time. I tried to cackle, but it came out as cute giggles.

Oh, Dino was going to have fun have me as a little sister.

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><p><strong>UPDATE:<strong>

**Ok, I went back and revised this, because when I took a break, my writing style for this changed a little bit and so did the quality, so here's the newest version of it. Nothing major changed, just a lot of rewording. OK, moving onto to important note I had in the first version:**

**I am aware that there are two versions of Dino's last name/family name, but I am using the one on the wiki (Chiavarone). I'm pretty sure that's all.**

**Edit of edit: Okay, so I am going through and fixing chapters (like, all of them) I would just like to point and laugh at the name I have chosen for Cloud. Like, seriously? What kind of name is Cloud? Truthfully, I don't even remember making the conscious decision to name her Cloud. What the fuck was younger me thinking? Or maybe she wasn't thinking at all? I wouldn't put it past myself. Anyways, since it's really too late to change it now (I've gone this far already, it would be silly to change it now, then I would have to change EVERYTHING, and I am not doing that), I'm just going to laugh at it now. **

**-Klu**


	2. Family Secrets

**I don't own KHR or Dino, but I do own Cloud. **

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><p><strong>"It is folly to say you know what is happening to other people. Only they know, if they exist. They have their own universes of their eyes an ears."<strong>

**-Douglas Adam, _The Restaurant at the End of the Universe_**

Many would state that the Mother Nature indeed in a pleasant mood on this day, seeing that the sun was shining brilliantly, and the wind was blowing ever so slightly, gently rolling the clouds across the sky and Dino Chiavarone would agree with them. At the precise moment, the future don himself was leisurely strolling throughout the gardens, tripping every now and then due to his clumsiness, but nevertheless, enjoying the day. His eyes followed a robin to a nearby tree only to look under the said tree to see a small girl, lazily resting against the truck, reading a book.

Dino smiled at his little sister. She was going to be a heart breaker, he thought, when she eventually grew into her features. After all, she did mostly resemble their mother, who was regarded as a beauty. As Dino approached her, he observed her heavy lidded, large green eyes scanning the page.

"Reading a picture book are you?" he teased good heartedly, ruffling her curly head in the process. The girl glance at her page number, repeated it to herself, then closed the book, and looked up lazily at her brother. He noted that she always wore a tired, dreamy look on her face.

"No, chapter book actually." She deadpanned. Dino blinked, and then laughed gain good naturedly.

"You sure are one smart two-year old!" he attempted to lean down to ruffle her hair again, but unfortunately tripped in the process and landed on the small girl. Her eyes widened in surprise as her brother fell on her.

"Dino-" her voice was muffled from being under him-"Get off."

"Oh, sorry, Cloud. The grass is slippery."

She blinked at him lazily, and then pushed him off. She then reached for her previous book and hit him on the head with it.

"Ow! Cloud that hurt!" he whined. She rolled her eyes at him, then plopped down in the grass.

"Sometimes I think I act more like the brother she muttered before her eyes drifted to the sky with a distant look in her eyes. Deciding to follow her lead, he too laid down beside her. A comfortable silence passed between them until Cloud broke it.

"You know, you're more like a girl than a boy since you complain so much."

"C-Cloud!"

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><p>You know, growing up for the past two years had been pretty cool; especially since I can actually remember early childhood. I learned Italian pretty quick actually. It took me a whole year and a half though, since I kept wanting to talk in English. Not mention the disappointment I got when I discovered that my strawberry blonde hair followed me. I mean, seriously? How does that work? Can hair color really follow you into another life?<p>

After I learned Italian, I was home free in learning. Since I had already been through elementary, middle, and some of high school, I already knew much more than the average two year old should. For example I am now reading every chapter book I can find. I don't want to get the huge ones just yet, so not to freak out my family, but I was just too tired of the picture books. Already, I was noticed to be a "prodigy" (although I guess I'm a fake prodigy, since I'm sort of cheating? Either way, I 'm gladly accepting the title) and advanced tutors have already been set up for me (we'll see how that goes). I already secretly help Dino out with his math homework. Secretly because I don't think he wants anyone to know that his younger sister corrects his homework.

I also slept a lot. I haven't decided yet if that's healthy for a two year old or not. After all, all the little kids I saw in my past life were annoying brats running around and screaming. But, I guess my parents are happy that I'm a calm baby (I know I would be if I were a parent).

Although, I was worried about my mother. Ten year old Dino held my concern. She was coughing a lot more lately, not to mention looked to be weaker and more fragile every passing day. I'm scared for her life. In Reborn! It never mentions Dino's mother at all, so I assume she died. I hope I'm wrong. I really hope I'm wrong. Because now, That's my mother too.

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><p>"Mama, why is my hair red?" I watched carefully as my mother's eyes widened ever so slightly and her mouth made a small gap before she quickly composed herself in one blink.<p>

"Why do you want to know, princess?" She asked quietly as she continued reading.

"Papa's hair is blonde," I started, "And your hair is brown. Dino takes after Papa, so who do I take after? Why do I have red hair?"

"Strawberry blonde, dear," she corrected as she flipped a page.

"Mama," I sighed, knowing what she was doing. She laughed quietly, but that soon turned into violent coughs. I winced and looked away as she composed herself, then felt frail hands pull at my waist. I placed my own book on the arm chair as Mama pulled me more onto her lap.

"Cloud, my princess" she started softly, "You have red hair because you take after your Mama," she explained. I scrunched my nose in confusion.

"But you have brown hair," I reminded her.

"I told your father you took after my sister," she explained, ignoring my statement, "and in many ways," she continued, giving me a side glance, "…you do." I was surprised, to say the least. Mama had never talked about her family before, and nobody else seemed to be eager to bring the subject up. I had guessed that is was a taboo of sorts; something Mama didn't want to talk about. Which is why I was so surprised she was talking about it now.

"But Cloud," she cupped my face and gently turned it to face her, "don't tell your father about this."

"Yes, Mama."

"Now," she gave me a small smile, and positioned her book so it was sitting on both of our laps, "what is the meaning of a snapdragon?" I ran my hand over the picture of the flower, going through all the plant and herb information Mama had taught me.

"Graciousness," I replied.

"And deception," my mother responded. "Don't ever forget that, my little princess."

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><p><strong>Family Feud; Brother vs. Sister 01: We're related<strong>

I have made a realization; Dino is not the same Dino. In other words, he's is way more of a wimp as a kid. Example: The common, fight over the last (name of food) on a plate.

One morning, one of the maids decided to make up pancakes. Dino and I, after both eating an equal amount of pancakes, notice that there is only one, luscious pancake left. We both eye each other. And then we both make a mad dive for the pancakes. I cursed in my head as Dino got it first (you know, since cursing out loud as a two-year-old would be inappropriate). He saw that I was about to snatch it from him, and so he licked it (which was a very childish thing to do, but hey, he's ten). I gave him a blank look. Then I snatched the pancake from his hands and stuffed it in my mouth. He looked at me with a disgusted look on his face.

I shrugged. "We're related." And then I jumped off my chair and walked off to go take a nap and wonder if he was really the brother in this relationship.

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><p>"I have decided," our father stated, clasping his hands together, "that you two are going to learn piano!" I blinked up lazily at his strained smile and Dino fidgeted slightly beside me.<p>

"Why piano?" I asked after a moment.

"Because the piano is the instrument of elegance and grace, my dear princess," Papa recited, a bit dramatically. "Think of the compliments you'll both receive from the family when you play such elegant music for them. The piano is the perfect instrument for you two to learn… and it's the only instrument left that can't be easily broken by Dino," he added quietly.

"Why are we both learning it?" I questioned, slightly distracted as I replayed the numerous musical disasters Dino has caused throughout the process of him learning (or failing to learn) how to play at least one musical instrument.

"Two birds, one stone," Papa replied simply, "And because you have had no ambition to play any instrument we want you to try to learn how to play. For such a prodigy, you are extremely lazy, my princess," he complained with a heavy sigh, then continued.

"Now, here is your teacher," he stepped away and gestured to the man behind him. "This is Constantin Babineaux, one of the best pianists in France." He began walking out of the room, but stopped to ruffle my hair and give us both a stern look. "Be nice. Don't break anything." And with that, he exited. Constantin looked between Dino and me with a judgmental expression.

"All right, children," he said, his thick French accent heard in through the Italian. "Let us begin the lesson."

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><p>"This is unbelievable."<p>

"I know, under half an hour; that should break a record or something right?" My smile dropped as Papa gave me a stern look from behind his desk, where he sat with his hands rubbing his temples, almost glaring at us. I sighed and gave up trying to keep up a happy act, and returned to my usual, sleepy expression as I glanced around the room, chewing the inside of my cheek. A disheveled Dino shuffled beside me, also looking around the room, or rather, looking anywhere but our father's direction. Constantin stood behind us, looking quite disheveled himself.

"I will start with the girl," one of the greatest pianists in France began with a lot of irritation in his voice. "You say she is a prodigy? Ha! This girl just sat at the piano without lifting a finger, mocked the art of piano playing, and would have fell asleep if she had not fallen off the bench!" Dino covered his mouth, attempting to hide his chuckles. My father gave me a disapproving, yet unsurprised glance. I simply shrugged.

"I regret nothing," I admitted, then ever-so-gracefully plopped down in one of Papa's office chairs. Constantin gave our father an incredulous look. He shrugged tiredly and gestured to Dino.

"This is normal for her," Papa explained. "What did he do?" The Pianist glared down at Dino as he recalled the events.

"I send her," he gestured to me, "out in the hallway to focus on this one," he roughly jabbed a finger towards Dino, "believing that he would be better than his sister. As you can see," he gestured at himself and my brother, "I was drastically wrong." Clearly confused, Papa raised an eyebrow and looked at Dino, who rubbed the back of his head and looked away.

"Yeah…. We need a new piano," Dino muttered quietly.

"Papa," I inputted, "I heard everything from the hallway. You don't want to know what happened." Papa's eye twitched.

"Sadly, this is normal for him too," Papa admitted with an exasperated sigh. Constantin looked between us with a confused expression.

"Normal? This is normal? A lazy prodigy and a clumsy heir?" We all nodded. I smirked up at the pianist from my comfy chair.

"Welcome to our family."

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><p><strong>Family Feud; Brother vs. Sister 02: Golden Child<strong>

"What do you mean you're the favorite child?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" I replied, then pointed at a problem on his paper. "That's wrong." He sighed and angrily erased it. I swung my legs smugly as I leaned back on the desk in the library. Usually, I would have been outside with Mama, but she was too sick to even be in the green house or the garden today.

"Why are you the favorite child, Cloud?" Dino asked after I had approved his new answer.

"Well, first of all, I'm cuter." He opened his mouth, then promptly closed it. I continued, "I'm the prodigy," I said, lifting my fingers to make quotation marks as I said prodigy. "And I'm the baby."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"The baby is more spoiled, and more spoiled means golden child," I finished with a bright smile. He scoffed.

"Well, I'm the heir to the family," he retorted, then smiled smugly at me. I frowned, as I thought up a comeback.

"So? That's a dangerous thing. I know I don't want to be the head of one of the most influential families in the mafia," I pointed out. His smile dropped. "You know what? If being the golden child means being the boss, then you can have it," I said as I dropped down from the desk. "I don't want that responsibility hanging other my head. I'll settle with the cutest prodigy, thank you very much."

"Wait, what?!" Dino, in his attempt to stand up out of the chair and follow me as I made my way out of the library, tripped and fell to the floor with a loud thump. "Dangerous? Responsibility? I didn't think about that! I don't want to be a mafia boss!"

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><p>I was closer to my mother than my father in my new life. Maybe this was because Papa was so busy with the family, or for some other reason. Either way, even though I was well aware of her upcoming death, I had grown extremely close to my mother. It wasn't like Mama neglected Dino. It was simply a matter of relating. And my mother and I related. Maybe it was because we both had something to hide, and we both knew it. She knew I was different. She didn't just simply pass me off as a grand prodigy like Papa, or even Dino. But she didn't pry. Maybe it was because she knew she didn't have the time left to pry.<p>

I didn't pry either, but it might as well have been for the same reason. I saw glimpses of her past she was so careful to hide from others, yet let slip through her usually exterior with me. Maybe she was tired. I knew I was, and I hadn't even been in this new, yet familiar world, for barely three years.

I saw a picture once. It was the only material hint I had seen from my mother's past. When I entered the room it was hidden, but when she saw it was just me, Mama relaxed and pulled the picture out. I had asked her what it was, thinking I wouldn't get an answer.

"Memories, my little princess," She replied pulling me into the wheelchair with her. She traced her fingers over the faces of the three young women in the picture. All of them happy, smiling. Her fingers lingered on the middle woman, who had wild, deep red hair and green eyes like Mama's. I only noticed the young woman on the right had the exact same eyes as Mama and the exact same smile, before the picture was hidden by my mother.

"Don't tell your father about this," she whispered as she pulled me into a hug.

"Yes, Mama." This had become regular for us; our little secret to keep from Papa. What secret we were keeping? I have no ambition to find out. Not now, not when I can still spend time with her. And lately, that time had been running out.

They keep telling me she'll get better, that this sickness, whatever it is will pass. They talk to me like a child, and in many ways, I still am a child. But they don't think I'll understand. And I do. I understand so much more than they think. But they don't think that, so they tell me she'll get better. They tell me she'll make it, that she'll live.

But I know she won't.

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><p><strong>AN:<strong>

Chapter two is out! Yaaa! Anyways, I decided not to mess with the little details of her growing up, so I'm skipping in between the years. Things start to pick up once Reborn comes along. I decide to make Dino the same age as Tsuna when he got Reborn as a tutor, so he will be 14 years old which will make Cloud... (it's sad I had to use a calculator for this) 6. Wow, big difference. That means that the Don dies when Dino is 14. I also decided not to give Dino and Cloud's dad a name, only referring to him as the don, or their dad.

You know all those funny things brothers and sisters do? All those things they fight over? Well, I'm making a chain of omakes about them for this story and calling it Family Feud; Brother vs. Sister. Tell me suggestions if you have any for this! Just anything a brother and sister do that can be funny. I'll write them at the end if I have an idea.

**Edit:** Okay, as I'm editing, I'm fleshing out relationships, because I just had a big idea for their mom, and I'm sort of in love with it, and the parents were EXTREMELY flat before and that doesn't sit right with me. Therefore, I added some stories to this, and I took some unnecessary ones out.

-Klu


	3. Carnations

**I don't own KHR or Dino, but I do own Cloud and a cross country shirt that says on the back "Your sport's punishment is our sport." **

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><p><strong>"We're all going to die, all of us, what a circus. That alone should make us love each other, but it doesn't. We are terrorized and flattened by trivialities, we are eaten up by nothing."<strong>

**-Charles Bukowski **

I was four when my mother died. I felt regret. True regret for the first time in my two lives. In my other life, no one close to me really died. My relatives were healthy, my friends were safe, and it turned out I was the first out of all of them to really "die". But now, with someone close to me dead, I regretted not being there. I regretted not being there for my mother. I regretted not being there for my old family. Maybe it wasn't as soul crushing when I left them because I knew they were alright when I left them. I regret leaving them. And I regret not telling her goodbye.

I didn't seem right. It was sunny on the day she died. Not even the sky would shed a tear for her. She was in the hospital when she passed away. The last time I saw her was in the garden. She had wanted to plant flowers for so long, but was never well enough to do it.

It was one of the rare days she was allowed out of the house by Papa. Her skin looked pale, almost transparent as the sun hit it, but she somehow made it seem unique, beautiful. She still smiled, but every now and then she winced in pain as she bit down the urge to cough. I looked down guiltily every time I saw her doing this. I knew she was trying to be strong for me.

"Cloud, my little princess," she whispered. Her beautiful voice had left her not too long ago.

I smiled at her. I missed these times we used to spend together. The secrets we shared, and the ones that went unspoken. We hadn't even seen each other in so long; it was a relief to see her.

"Mama, what are we planting today?" I questioned, gently grabbing her hand and leading her to a nearby bench. A member of the family was behind us, carrying the gardening tools and plants. I stood on the tips of my toes to see over his arms. I caught glimpses of pink. My mother smiled down at my actions.

"Carnations; we're planting carnations today, Cloud," she informed me, "Ivan, will you please hand Cloud the flowers so we can begin? You are free to go after that."

"Yes ma'am. Are..." He hesitated before asking again, knowing the answer will be the same. "Are you sure you don't want me to go get your wheel chair?"

"No," he answer was almost too quick. "I'l be fine."

And so we began planting; really it was me planting and her sitting on the bench talking to me. While I was planting, Mama began to explain to me the meaning of the carnation. One of our moments. One of our secrets we shared together.

"My little Cloud, carnations express love, fascination and distinction, virtually every color carries a unique and rich association. White carnations suggest pure love and good luck, light red symbolizes admiration, while dark red represents deep love and affection. Purple carnations imply capriciousness, and pink carnations carry the greatest significance," she paused there, catching her breathe. This was really the most talking she had done in a long time. I waited patiently, patting down the soil around the flower's new home.

"Some believe that carnations first appeared on earth from the Virgin Mary's tears – making them the symbol of a mother's undying love. And that's why they are my favorite, my little Cloud," she finished, smiling down adoringly at me. I glanced down at the newly planted carnations, and looked back up at Mama. I then ran over to her and hugged her, with tears in my eyes. I was surprised at my myself that I was able to cry then. I never cry. She knows this. Mama knew me so well. She was the only one I had cried in front of so far. Another secret to share, just between me, Mama, and the carnations.

Carnations are my favorite flowers. I realized this when I was told she had died (something I've known would happen for such a long time). It reminds me how much my Mama loves me. It reminded me how much my Mother loves me. It's also a reminder of how much I love them. It reminds me how much I love my family; both of them. And I'll always love them.

Forever.

* * *

><p>I hated myself for not crying at Mama's funeral. If I had cried for her then, then why couldn't I cry now? I had always thought that I would definitely cry when someone close to me died. Prodigy or not, I was the youngest. I was the child. They expected me to cry. They looked to me for tears. I tried. I really did, I tried so hard to cry for my Mama. But, I just couldn't. I was numb, I felt nothing. And I hated myself for it.<p>

It was a massive sea of black at the funeral. The whole family was there, and some of the other ally families, along with people from the village near the estate. All of them came up to us, one by one, to talk to us. I saw the Vongola ninth. He approached my father first, talked to him in a solemn tone. My father didn't seem to react. He stood tall and solemn, empty. He had slowly been receding into himself even more as each day passes, and that frightened me slightly. The Ninth then looked to Dino and spoke to him. I didn't really pay attention to what they were saying; I was too busy trying to the stare at the open casket we were standing by. Flowers surrounded the floor around it, all different colors, but the one that caught my eye was the carnation she was holding in her pale hands.

I felt a pair of warm hands on my shoulders, so I turned to meet the Vongola ninth. He smiled gently at me, and I look up at him, not returned the gesture.

"I am sorry for your loss, my dear."

I gave a small smile.

"Thank you, Nono," I replied. He then kissed my forehead and walked away.

* * *

><p>It was when they buried her that Dino cried.<p>

I had never seen a boy cry before. Boy, as in, over the age of 6. Well, maybe on TV or movies or something, but never in real life. It wasn't fake crying either, or crocodile tears or anything like that. It was sincere. It was real.

He was behind me with his hands on my shoulders, when I noticed his grip tighten. I looked up to see a trail of tears slowly snaking their way down his face. His eyes were shut tight, and then he started sobbing. It was strange; they were silent sobs that vibrated through his body. Others would only be able to tell that he was crying by his face.

That was the first time I had ever seen a boy cry. It wasn't weak or anything…. Really, it was strong. Crying doesn't mean you're weak; it just means you were strong enough to keep the tears inside for so long.

I looked up at my crying brother, and not knowing what else to do, I hugged him.

Maybe I wasn't strong enough to cry.

* * *

><p>When we got back from the funeral that night, no body spoke. Dino and I just simply went our separate ways to our rooms, while Papa slowly made his way to the office. He looked at me in the eyes at one point, but froze before he could open his mouth. I looked away quickly and kept walking towards my room. I knew he saw mama's eyes.<p>

When I got there I took off my black dress and slipped into my pajamas. It was like I was in a trance; I was moving, but never really thinking about what I was doing. I stopped moving all together when I saw the flowers on my nightstand.

I stood there for a second, letting the thoughts of the day wash over me. I wasn't until that moment when I started to cry. It was sudden; tears started to pour from my eyes as I fell to my knees sobbing. It wasn't silent sobs like Dino, but full heart breaking sobs. I kept sniffing , trying to keep the snot from coming out my nose. I probably looked like a mess, but at the moment, I didn't care. After a while the sobs turned into mere sniffs as I looked at the carnations again, remembering her voice.

_"Don't tell Papa, my little Princess. It will our little secret."_

* * *

><p><strong>One year later:<strong>

_**Cloud: 5 Dino: 13**_

Okay, I'd like to start out that it was not my fault. Completely and entirely not my fault, even the slightest bit. It was all Squalo's fault. And yes, the long-haired-idiot-commander-varia-VOOOOI-Squalo. Only, he has shorter hair (seriously, I almost didn't recognize him until he started to go all 'VOOOI!' on me), and is not aware that he is going to be a Varia officer yet. So I have to keep that on the down low.

Anyway, back to the problem at hand:

I was at the mansion sitting comfortable in the Library with a medical book in my hand reading _peacefully_. Emphasis on the peacefully. Right when I was three pages away from finishing I heard a crash in the hallway. I rolled my eyes, assuming it was Dino simply falling down again. I was going to ignore it until I heard an unfamiliar voice.

"VOI! Pipsqueak, why do you have to be so damn clumsy?"

I blinked. When I was trying to place a voice with a face and a face with a name, someone burst into the Library dragging Dino in behind him. My usually lazy eyes widened in surprise.

I pointed at him, "You!"

"VOOI! You!" he replied, but then his eyebrows collided and his expression turned into a confused one.

"Wait, how the hell do you even know me?" he questioned, rather loudly. I cursed under my breathe, then jumped off my chair.

"No reason," I stated dryly, then hurried out the door.

"Hey, come back here, brat!" Squalo yelled after me, dropping Dino. I huffed and turned around. My lazy eyes met his sharp eyes.

"Hm?"

"How the hell do you know me?"

"I thought you were someone else," I said really hoping he didn't see me hesitate. He looked at me, clearly not believing me, when Dino stepped in. I really love my brother, especially when he gets me out of intense glaring interrogations.

"Yo, 'Sis! I see you've met Squalo!" Dino said, rubbing the back of his head. Squalo's gaze moved to Dino.

"Voi, Pipsqueak! Let's get this project done with fast!" he yelled at my brother, "I don't like being with you any more than I have to be." Dino ignored his comment, and then turned towards me.

"That's Squalo, he's in my history class at school," Dino explained, "We're got assigned a project over the history of the dons of any mafia family, and we got stuck as partners." Dino said the last part with a laugh, but I could tell Squalo was annoyed with it. I smirked at his misery, but then I thought of something.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked warily. Dino's smile grew wider, and more forced.

"Because I was hoping you could help us with it?"

Both Squalo and I gave him a blank stare.

"No," we both said at the same time. Dino's smile fell.

"Why not?" he whined.

"Why the hell do we need help from a little girl?" Squalo complained.

"And to put it bluntly, I don't want to," I supplied.

"But Squalo, Cloud knows where everything in the Library is a lot more than us, and will probably keep us on task and organized if we pay her," Dino argued.

"Is that your on-"I stopped, "Wait, you'll pay me?" Dino nodded while Squalo looked like me was deep in thought.

"To sum it up, you only want my help because you're too lazy to look through the Library to find information, when I know where it is?"

Dino nodded again. I smiled.

"I finally see the resemblance between us. Let's get started."

* * *

><p>Dino's and Squalo's school was pretty much like any other Italian school. Except it was a mafia school. It had all the basic subjects, but with a few extra such as Mafia Law, Weapons traininghistory, Mafia family history, and other things like that.

The project they we were working on currently was in the Mafia family history class. Since Dino was in the Chiavarone family and was going to become the boss, they decided to do there project on the Chiavarone I actually spend a lot of time in the Library over the past year, therefore, I now where half the books are. . All I had to do was find all the books on the past bosses and hand them to either Squalo or Dino. It was a pretty easy job for someone who was going to get paid.

Now, I bet you're wondering when it all went wrong. It started when I was getting too lazy to continue to keep walking back in forth between the bookshelves and the table the two guys were at. So I started to throw them. I startled Dino the first time, with one landing right beside his head. The second time I hit Squalo in the head. _That's_ where things went wrong.

"VOOOOI! Brat! What the hell was that for!"

"Sorry, I missed." I replied blankly. Squalo glared at me, picked up a book and threw it at hit me straight in the face. I had to admit, he had an arm. When I composed myself, I looked back at Squalo, and we met each other's eyes. We both had the same exact thoughts in our minds, which was along the lines of accepting challenges and waging a war. Either way, it was not going to end well.

And thus, the book wars began. Both Squalo and I dove behind bookshelves. We soon made piles of books, or as we referred to them, ammo, as we prepared for the battle. Dino didn't know what to think, so he just sat there in the middle, which is the worst possible thing he could've done.

That was when all hell broke loose. And Dino, poor, poor, Dino, was caught in the cross fire. Books were flung everywhere for about an hour. I had an advantage, being smaller, but Squalo had the better arm. We were both equally injured when Romario walked in to inform us that dinner was ready. He nearly screamed when he saw the battle field. He looked around the room, surveying the wreckage, when he saw Squalo and I arguing besides a fallen bookshelf. He looked closer and sighed when he saw who was squished under it.

"No way, it was your fault that this all happened! You returned fire!" I argued.

"Like Hell it was! You're the one who threw the first book in the first place!" Squalo shot back.

Romario cleared his throat. We both spun around and pointed at each other.

"It was their fault!"

The older man sighed again. "Are we just going to let young boss die under the book case or are we going to help him up."

Our faces turned blank as we turned back towards my brother, sprawled out under the book case.

"Oops…" I muttered. Squalo and I look towards each other again. And yet, even though we were glaring, we both couldn't help but feel some sort of relationship form. Whether that relationship was good or not would be impossible to tell from this point.

* * *

><p>"This is the fourth tutor, Cloud." My eyes angrily moved away from my father's as he looked down at me disapprovingly. He sighed sadly and put his head in his hands, and after a moment he looked at me again. "You can't keep this up, princess." I almost winced at the pet-name, something that had once had an endearing feeling behind it, but now felt hollow. "You and I both know that you're making your tutors angry on purpose in order to scare them off. Why are you doing this? You have so much potential and promise, yet you won't let these people help you, teach you! They are trying to sculpt you into something great, Cloud. Why won't you let them?"<p>

"Maybe I don't want to be sculpted. I don't understand why I need tutors," I muttered bitterly. "I can learn just as much on my own."

"Cloud, princess-" This time I did I winced at the name, and he stopped. "… is this about your mother?" I bit my bottom lip. He looked at me with sad sunken eyes. "I know you two were close," he continued slowly, "but you can't just give up all your potential just because she's gone and you're sad." I clenched my fists. I didn't want to look at my father.

He was different, ever since Mama died. He was more tired than ever before. He barely acknowledged me, and he only talked to Dino when it was family related. I knew those talks were only making Dino more nervous about becoming boss. I knew about the financial problems the family was having. I noticed more lines and gray hairs and I noticed how he gave up easily when dealing with me now. I noticed him wince a little bit every time he looked me in the eyes. I noticed these things, but I still acted out. I knew I shouldn't. But I'm a child. I'm a child who wants her father's love. I'm a child who wants her father's love for being myself and not just a sculpted, hollow trophy of a perfect princess. I want my father to look at me without being hurt just because I have the eyes of his late wife.

"I don't want to be confined," I started slowly. "I feel caged. They expect so much out of me. They don't see me as a kid, Papa. I don't like that." The words felt childish as I said them. _'I don't like that'_. Yet, even if it sounded childish, this reached a much deeper level for me. In my old life, I was normal. I was an average student. I was never above ordinary, or a 'prodigy' like I am now. At first, when Mama was alive, I liked being this prodigy. I thrived on it at some points. But, maybe that was only because I had Mama there to pull be back. She knew my secret, without even being told the details of it. She saw through my illusion, and kept me grounded. But with her gone, I'm looked upon with high-regarding eyes. And I don't like that.

I feel pressured. I feel like if I make one mistake, miss one little thing that is expected of me, then I lose. And if I lose that, it's the only thing I have left in my father's eyes.

"I don't like that," I repeated numbly. "I'm not a trophy."

"Princess, you're acting childish-"

"I am a child," I snapped at him. "I'm just a kid, and these tutors don't see that. I don't need those kinds of tutors, Papa. You think you're pushing me to be my best, but it's just making me feel more confined. And while we're on it, you're putting too much pressure on Dino, and it's getting to too-"

"That's enough." I shut my mouth, and slunk back in my chair, well aware I had gone too far. "If your mother saw the way you're acting now she wo-"

"Don't you dare say that!" I shot up at of my chair. "Don't bring her into this!" I balled my fist and looked down, eyes stinging. I took a few breaths to calm down, before turning towards the door.

"Do you think you even knew her, Papa?" I asked him quietly with my back turned.

"…. No, I don't think I did, princess."

* * *

><p>"The Sword Emperor?" Squalo nodded.<p>

"I'm going to take him down," he said gruffly, looking up from his school work. "One day. I've already defeated plenty of sword masters."

"You think you can do it?" I questioned. He scoffed.

"You doubting me brat?"

"What made you think that?" I shot back at him. "I was just asking if you thought you can do it. Do you believe in yourself?"

"Of course I do, brat!" He bonked me on the head. I stuck my tongue out and rubbed the spot he hit me, but noticed that he held back.

"Good. 'Cause it's going to happen someday," I said firmly. He raised an eyebrow.

"How do you know?" I shrugged in response.

"Call it a hunch." He scoffed at my response, and returned to his work just as Dino burst through the library doors, looking extremely stressed and tired.

"Voi! Where the hell have you been, pipsqueak?!"

"Sorry, Squalo," Dino laughed nervously. I tried not to react to the obviously forced laugh. "I was at the hospital. Family business, you know." Squalo's eyes narrowed, but he didn't ask.

"Whatever, pipsqueak. Let's just get this project over with."

"You guys got put together again?" I asked.

"Why else would I be here, brat?" Squalo pointed out. I thought for a moment, then shrugged.

"I don't know. I didn't really think about _why_ you were here," I admitted, sheepishly, "I just noticed that you _were_ here, you know?" They stared at me with deadpan expressions.

"…. Don't you have something better to do than bother us?" Squalo asked, deciding to move on from my obliviousness. "Go play outside with your imaginary friends like a normal brat. You're, what? Seven or something?"

"Five," I corrected.

"Doesn't matter," Squalo continued, with a slightly twitching eye, "You're so smart and everything, so shouldn't you have school or work or something?"

"Nah," I shook my head, "I have tutors and stuff, but the work is easy. I don't think Papa's planning on sending me to school either."

"Cloud's somewhat of a prodigy," Dino explained with a proud smile. I smiled brightly at the two. Squalo raised an eyebrow at my expression.

"A prodigy, huh?" His eyes narrowed and he leaned closer to me. My smile dropped and my expression became neutral. "Let's have a pop quiz then, brat. Nine times nine."

"81."

"First twelve decimal points in Pi?"

"One, four, one, five, nine, two, six, five, three, five, eight, and nine. "

"The answer to the sphinx's riddle?"

"Man."

_"How are you today?"_ He asked me in English.

_"Good, thank you for asking,"_ I replied. "Are you done yet?" He scowled and looked around the room, trying to think of something else to quiz me on. He looked down at the paper he and Dino were supposed to be working on and slowly slid it closer to him so he could read it.

"What is the name of the treaty that ended the standoff between the Beccio and the Nuevo?"

"…. I'm not doing your work for you," I replied blankly.

"Oh? So you don't know the answer?" Squalo replied with a smug smirk. I scoffed.

"Of course I do," I easily bluffed.

"Then why don't you answer the question?"

"Because I'm not going to do your work…. Unless you pay me appropriately, that is." He raised an eyebrow.

"And what would that be, brat?" I hummed thoughtfully.

"My weight in gold," I replied cheekily. He snorted. Dino, who had been watching our exchange with wide eyes, sighed and plopped his head on the table.

"I'm not paying a little brat with gold. That's ridiculous," Squalo said defiantly.

"Then I'm not doing your work for you."

"Then I guess you don't know the answer." Dino put his hand over my mouth to silence me before I could continue this endless argument.

"Please," he pleaded, looking between both of us, "stop. This could easily go on forever. Let's just get this over with before you two go after each other's throats. Please." Squalo and I blinked, exchanged looks, then went back to what we were doing before; Squalo to his homework and I to my book. Dino sighed in relief once it was truly peaceful again, the tension from our endless loop from before completely gone.

"I swear, Squalo," Dino muttered quietly, "You have more sibling arguments with my sister than I do."

* * *

><p>Ever since that one argument, my relationship with my father had never been the same. Then again, the relationship we had now could barely be called a relationship. It was fake, and artificial. We acted pleasant around each other, and continued to keep the image of an endearing father and his darling daughter. But the words and smiles and exchanges were hollow and were only shown for the rest of the family's sake, and for Dino's sake. Papa and I came to the mutual understanding that Dino did not need to know of our fallout we had. He didn't need that on his shoulders as well.<p>

He was dying; it was something we had both come to terms with, ever since Papa had begun to visit to the hospital more and more often. But while we had come to a grim acceptance, Dino seemed blissfully unaware, or perhaps he just didn't want to accept it. When Papa dies, Dino will take over the family. Papa knew he was leaving it in shambles with the financial crisis, but he also knew he could do nothing more to help it. It would be up to Dino, and that was his inevitable fate. He would save our family, and I had confidence in this. Not because I literally knew he would do this, but because I believed in my brother.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean you've done this before?"<p>

"I told you, Dino," I huffed, "I've done this at least a dozen times."

"A dozen times!?"

"Probably more," I admitted quickly, "but the point is you need to have more fun. You've been cooped up for too long and need some fun, bro."

"But, Cloud," he frowned and fidgeted slightly. "I need to prepare to be the boss. We both know Papa's not doing well an-"

"You're not the boss yet, so in the meantime, have fun," I finished, handing him the large tray. He looked between me and the tray, then hesitantly took it. I held the tray, balanced it on the stair railing and made sure it was steady as he clumsy got on it.

"And you haven't gotten hurt doing this? Ever?"

"Nope," I replied cheekily, ready to give him a push. "But, you're so talented, you might just manage it. Have fun and try not to die!"

"Wait, Cloud! I don't want to do this anymore!" Unfortunately for my brother, I had already completed the small push that sent him flying down the stair rails. He was actually doing fine despite his size and lack of grace, until he came to the curve in the steps.

"Lean! Lean, Dino, lean!" I attempted to guide him, but my message didn't seem to get to him. He tumbled off the side of the stairs ever-so-gracefully. I sighed and smacked my forehead when I heard him hit the ground, along with another gruff "uphm". "At least he fell over the side instead of on the stairs," I muttered quietly, thinking of an even bigger disaster that could have happened. After a moment of contemplating whether I should actually go see if my brother survived the trip, I made my way down when I heard signs of life, giving me hope. I sighed in relief when I saw that Dino had landed on Romario, who happened to be walking by the stairs at an unlucky time.

"I'm guessing that this was your idea, princess," the man greeted me as he pushed himself up, then moved to make sure Dino was alright. I smiled sheepishly at him.

"If I say yes, will I get in trouble?" I replied. Dino groaned loudly. "You alright, bro?" I asked, a bit worried.

"Yeah, I'm fine Cloud," he answered. A small smile slipped on my face. Dino shrunk back slightly after seeing my expectant expression. "…what?"

"Was it fun?" I leaned in, almost in a teasing manner. He smiled softly in return while rubbing the back of his head.

"Minus the pain? Yeah, it was fun, sis." My smile grew wider at his response. "We should do it again sometime."

* * *

><p><em>Edit: SO, I added a lot with the dad, and a bit more Squalo. Yay? I'm kind of making this a bit sad, but I almost had a perfect little family image before this, and I did not like that at all. Waaaaay too flat for me. And this leads into a lot of Cloud's personal, deep, problems. And I remembered that their father has messed up a lot financially, so I had to mention that somewhere, and from that point, a whole new beautifully complicated character arose along with an equally beautiful complicated family. <em>


	4. Letters to the Dead

**Chapter 4: Letters to the Dead**

**Cloud: 6 **

**Dino: 14**

**Disclaimer: If I owned KHR, the ending would be way different and Hibari would be in every chapter. Like, he would just be in the background, or in a small picture SOMEWHERE if he wasn't directly involved in the chapter. Every chapter. Hibari everywhere. **

* * *

><p><strong>"The loving tell the dying not to leave, and the dying do not listen. The dying tell us not to be sad for them, and we do not listen. The dialogue between the living and dead is full of misunderstanding and silence."<strong>

**-Welcome to Night Vale, Episode 37 – The Auction**

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mama,<em>

_Just how do you start a letter to the dead? I put dear, because you're dear to me, but will it always be that way? Will you will be dear to me as you are now, in ten years? Will I forget the endearment we felt towards each other, and the relationship we shared, when no one else could share it with us? It wasn't a perfect fit of course. No secret is ever the same, but we still related on the point that we had secrets and we had to keep them. I don't know what your secret was and I'm happy with that. Your secret was your shadow, but mine is a whole world._

_I miss you. Papa isn't the same since you died. In fact, he's dying himself; completely giving up on life. Of course, I won't blame him for that, since you did the exact same thing. Is that what dying is? Giving up on everything? If that's true, then I don't want that. I refuse to give up on others, on my family. I refuse to give up on Dino. Papa told me yesterday that I had to take care of him, that I have to protect Dino. It was one of those rare moments when there was light in his eyes again. But, that light faded all too quickly._

_I miss you. Dino does too, but he pushes it back. He's focusing on the family right now. He's trying to get ready to fix the mess Papa made. He's scared, Mama, and I am too because I have to protect him. I hope that when Reborn comes, everything will be fixed. Of course, that's the same as saying, I hope when Papa dies everything will be fixed. It's almost like he's dead already._

_There's a certain numbness I feel when thinking about Papa. I know he feels that same because that same, hollow numbness is in his eyes when he looks at me. I remind him too much of you. He said that to me once, a few weeks after you died and he had been drinking. I remembered that, but I don't he did. I'll be sad when he dies, but just that. He could never reach the degree of closeness we had between us and our secrets. You were my comforter. And now, without you, I have no one to confide in, to share my secret with. I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. Maybe I was not meant to share this secret with anyone. I don't like that, Mama. I miss you. I miss them to. I miss and regret that I left them so much._

_Writing letters to the dead is useless, because the only response is silence. I'm burning this as soon as I'm done. I need to push past this, or at least push it back enough where it doesn't affect me. I can't let these deaths and losses affect me. Maybe, I'll write to you again someday, when I feel like I need the comfort, but for now, your silent response is enough. I'm still a child. I have to remember that._

_Love,_

_Cloud_

* * *

><p>This isn't just a story. These aren't just characters. Characters can't actually die. Characters aren't real. But... these are people. Real, living, breathing people that other people care about. That I care about. People can die. People are real. This isn't a story. This is life; this is my life that I chose for myself. I realized this when my mother died, but it only really, truly hit me when Papa died. I knew it, of course. I knew that he was going to die, yet I didn't do anything. I could have saved him. I could have told somebody. He could still be alive. I could have saved him, but I didn't. I could have saved mama, but I like to think that I couldn't. My father, I might can handle the guilt of killing, but not her. Not when we were so close. It was all a story to me; something I could easily distance myself from, but that distance didn't last long.<p>

As I was kneeling by my father's deathbed, mulling over these thoughts, this shattering realization that I should have seen long ago, Dino ran out of the room, just as the plot showed. I mentally scoffed. Plot? An outline maybe. Who knows what I've changed with just my mere presence. I know a future; one single future that is loosely based on the present I am in now. The future I know has a happy ending, an ending reached with much strife and sacrifice, but a happy ending, no less. At this moment, I realize, that I have a chance, a sliver of a chance, but still a chance, to try to make that future a little bit happier. Right now, in my present, I wanted a happy ending. I knew it wouldn't be the same ending as the one I knew, but I bet I can get pretty darn close. I gripped my father's lifeless hand tighter, not out of love for him, never, but out of determination for others.

I have my resolve. I knew what would come next. I would strive for a happy ending for everybody, for these real people, not characters. I would prepare for what's coming, and try to prepare for what I am changing. It's risky, or course. What could one girl do anyway? It would be easy for me to just sit back and watch the plot, like I had previously thought I was going to do. This was the thought I had coming into this world, but it's impossible to do this now that I'm here. This isn't Tsuna's story, it's mine. I stood up and kissed my father's forehead for sake of the subordinates behind me.

"I'll protect him, Papa," I whispered quietly, "Just like you told me to." I squeezed his hand one last time before I turned to the subordinates, Dino's new subordinates, around me.

"We should go greet our guest," I smiled sadly at them. I took a deep breath and walked out of the room, preparing for the future ahead.

Because I knew what was coming next.

* * *

><p>I first met Reborn in the garden, the same afternoon he arrived. The way I was sitting, on the edge of the fountain, gently making ripples in the already softly moving water with my finger and head down cast with a blank expression, I would easily be mistaken for grieving over my father's death. And yet, I was guilty that it was quite the opposite.<p>

In a way, I was relieved he was gone. He was no longer here for me to catch his suspicious glances when he thought I wasn't looking, or to look away from his drunken, spiteful, almost hateful glares that had only increased since mom died. More importantly, he was no longer there to put so much pressure on Dino. Yet, even with him dead, that pressure was still there; my brother simple wasn't physically reminded of it anymore. I can admit to myself that I was relieved he was dead, and yet I felt incredibly guilty about it. These aren't thoughts a good daughter should think about her father's death.

"You must be Reborn," I said, bringing myself out of my own thoughts and acknowledging the hitman behind me.

"You have good ears," he allowed as I turned towards him to fully. I shrugged; a numb movement without much emotion behind it.

"It's not like you were trying to sneak up on me or something." He hopped up beside me on the edge of the fountain. I was surprised how calm I was reacting to actually meeting the Reborn for the first time, but after everything that happened, I was just too tired to be excited.

"So, you're Dino's sister," Reborn mused aloud, blatantly staring at me.

"Cloud," I introduced myself.

"Strange name," He smirked. I sighed, and looked away, his staring beginning to become slightly unnerving.

"Tell me about it," I said, bringing my knees up to my chest, trying to act unaffected. "So, you're Dino's new tutor, right?"

"Correct," Reborn answered. "You look just like your mother, or at least you will." The bluntness of the statement startled me.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "Is that why you were staring at me?"

"Was it making you uncomfortable?" I nodded. "Ok." He hopped off the edge of the fountain and began walking away.

"Wait!" I pushed myself up and ran after him. "What was that for?" He shrugged.

"I was just getting a read on my useless student's sister," he answered.

"A read?" I questioned. He stopped and turned around.

"To see what kind of person you are."

"… and what kind of person am I?" The question was hesitant. I didn't actually know whether or not he would answer, but he surprised me when he did.

"You're observant," he began, "and extremely mature for your age. You have a full understanding of death for how young you are, and you already know how to deal with sadness and guilt. You didn't have a good relationship with your father and you know how to put up an act for others, but you care for your useless brother a lot. That's something I can use," He explained. I blinked.

"You got all of that," I asked, "just from watching me sit by the fountain and making me uncomfortable with staring?" I whistled. "You _are_ the world's greatest hitman."

"Although that statement is true, I can't take all the credit. Nono told me about you as well," He admitted. "But I do plan on using you in Dino's training." I shrugged.

"As long as I don't have to do much, I'm pretty chill with anything.

"Good," Reborn stated. "It wasn't like you had a choice either way."

"What is that?" I asked, noticing a small green animal crawling on the small hitman's shoulder.

"This is Leon," Reborn introduced the lizard. Leon blinked at me with wide eyes from his perch on Reborn's shoulder.

"He's cute," I admitted with a small smile, reaching out to touch him gently.

"Touch Leon and die," Reborn warned. I retracted my hand.

"Okay, then."

* * *

><p>"When you said that you were going to use me in Dino's training," I said, trying to stop spinning in midair, "I didn't think you meant this, Reborn." For the past couple weeks, Reborn and I had been getting along beautifully, much to Dino's distress. After that first, awkward meeting, our relationship had simply bloomed from there. It helped that I had become increasingly happier in my mood and attitude since my father died, as had Dino. Then again, Dino probably hadn't had much time to think about it, since Reborn had been keeping him busy with 'exercises'. So far, I had only been helping in small ways, such as being extra weight on Dino's back when Reborn made him run, or yelling encouraging thoughts at Dino as he was running away from Reborn's bullets. I was happy to do those little things, but this, this was stepping out of my comfort zone.<p>

"Please explain to me why I am tied up and hanging over a river beneath a cliff," I kindly asked, looking down at the small hitman, who was comfortably sitting in a chair drinking an expresso nonchalantly.

"Motivation," he answered, not even bothering to look up. "Pipsqueak Dino knows that his sister is in danger, so he is motivated to go faster and do better." There was a girlish scream off in the distance. Reborn frowned. "But it seems it isn't working."

"You know," I sighed, finally accepting my fate, "I should have known that you were going to use me at bait at one point. I should have known, and yet here I am, still slightly offended."

"It's adorable that you think I care about your feelings," Reborn said blankly after another sip of expresso.

Dino chose this moment to heroically make his entrance (truthfully, he pathetically dragged himself out from under a bush, covered in cuts, scratches and bruises, but I'm pretty sure this is as heroic as my brother can get at this age).

"Cloud..." he panted, trying to push himself up, "are" _weez _"you" _weez_ "OK?"

"Aside from some emotional damage," I said sourly, throwing a glare Reborn's way for his earlier statement, "I'm fine, but you'd better hurry up with the hero s-"

"You're too late, Pipsqueak-Dino. The rope is about to break."

"But, Reborn, the rope is f-" and then Reborn shot the rope. Next thing I knew I was falling. I didn't even have time to get upset that Reborn was sending me to my death. I was brought out of my state of shock when something tackled me right before I hit the water. Considering I was still tied up, I was pretty useless in the water, but my mystery hero held onto me and swam us towards the surface.

"Cloud, are you OK?"

"Dino?" I spat water on him, "I thought you couldn't swim!" Dino didn't register this at first, occupied with keeping us above water. His eyes widened and he turned towards me, as if just remembering this fact.

"Oh, yeah."

And then the current swept us away again. I have to admit, Dino did a pretty good job of not letting us sink, drown and die. He managed to gain a little control back and keep us up for a while. I looked around to try to see my surroundings. I did not like what I saw.

"Dino, there's a-" I choked on water, as another wave splashed in my face.

"What?"

"There's a-"

"What?"

And then we went over the water fall.

* * *

><p>I was not a happy little Chiavarone. I was soaking wet, cold, and hungry (although that status didn't really change often). Oh, and there was the small little fact that I was lost. I had washed up on the shore of the river alone, not one clumsy, stupid brother in sight and it was all Reborn's fault.<p>

"Lovely," I muttered to nobody, "Just lovely." I wrung the water out of my now damp hair, and thanks to that damp hair (and damp body) I was freezing cold. "Great, fabulous," I continued to sniffle positive words with the insane hope that this un-positive situation will turn positive with the help of these positive words. Was I positive that this plan is going to work? Negative.

I looked at the sun's position, in hopes of getting a sense of direction. Of course, it had to be noon. Then again, even if I did wait long enough to find out which way was West, I had no idea which direction the mansion was in. I suppose I could go upstream and try to find the water fall. Maybe, if I was lucky (or unlucky) Reborn would still be in the same place. Though, if he wasn't, then I would still have no idea where I was or how to get back (This is thanks to Reborn. When he 'borrowed' me, he blind folded me, so I have no idea how far from the estate we were, or if anyone even knows we are gone).

I decided to look for Dino first. Then, when brother and sister were reunited, we would figure out what to do together.

"Wonderful." And with that positive word for this negative situation, I set off to find my idiot, clumsy brother.

* * *

><p>I found Dino by tripping over him. There I was, merrily (unmerrily) skipping (trudging) though the woods and suddenly I trip over what I first thought was a dead body, so naturally I screamed like the little girl I am and tried to kick it down a hill. As the body tumbled over the edge, I spotted a head of blond hair beneath the mud, leaves and twigs. A moment passed. Then I quickly scrambled down the hill after my brother who may or may not be dead. I made my way down the hill (stumbling all the way) and tried to check Dino's pulse. I say tried because I never got close enough to check. As I was reaching towards his neck, leaning in, Dino shot up, screaming. His forehead met mine and we both shot back in pain.<p>

"What the heck, bro?" I complained, rubbing my poorly mistreated head.

"W-who are you?" he asked, scrambling back until his back hit the tree behind him. His panicked eyes scanned the ground around him until they landed on a fallen tree limb. He grabbed his makeshift weapon and pointed it at me threateningly (Ha! Dino, threatening!). I was stunned into silence. A beat passed and he asked again. "Who are you?"

"...what?"

"I said who are you!" He yelled, tightening his grip on the branch.

"Dino... I am your father."

A moment passed. And then I laughed.

"I kid, I kid, Bro! I'm your sister. The Leia to your Luke or whatever," I doubled over, laughing.

"...who's Dino?"

I froze.

"You're kidding, right?" I stared at my brother. The tree branch dropped. Dino clutched his head in agony.

"I don't know... I don't know!" He cried, evidence of tears in his eyes. I rushed to his side.

"Hey, Dino, it's okay," I toughed his arm and he tensed, but didn't move away, "What do you remember?"

"Nothing, nothing at all..." he shook his head and leaned closer to me for comfort. I enveloped him in a full hug.

"It's okay," I soothed, trying to calm him. "You just probably hit you head when we went over the waterfall."

"We went over a wa-"

"Not important," I said quickly, glossing over that little fact, "I'll just start telling you stuff and hope you'll remember," I reassured him. Unfortunately, he didn't look so assured.

"You really think that will work?" he questioned hesitantly. I nodded enthusiastically.

"Sure. I'll just teach you to be Dino again."

"Your name is Dino."

He nodded.

"You are my brother."

Another nod.

"My name is Cloud."

"That's a weird name."

My expression deadpanned. We were currently sitting in a clearing in the middle of the woods. Still lost, in case you were thinking otherwise. I was either hoping that A) Someone was already looking for us and would find us soon and help me fix the Dino problem or B) I could fix the Dino problem and then Dino would know what to do. For now, I was working on plan B and hoping for A at the same time. I sighed.

"It's not like your name is any better, Dino," I reminded him.

"Are you sure you're my sister?" He asked, eyeing my hair, "I have blond hair, not red."

"It's strawberry blonde!" I responded almost heatedly. I rubbed my temples. This was a lot harder than I originally thought. "Okay," I said, trying to get back on subject, "Your name is Dino, you're my brother, and you're the head of the Chiavarone Family..." I trailed on when I noticed the blank look on Dino's face.

"What's a Chiavarone?"

"That's our family." He nodded again, a bit slowly. Then a thought struck him.

"Where's our mom and dad?" I frowned.

"They're dead." he was silent. "But," I continued, "we still have family that loves us." He stared at me for a moment, deep in thought. Then he spoke.

"What…" he hesitated. "What were they like? Our p-parents, I mean." I blinked, not expecting the question. I looked off, gathering my thoughts to think of a good answer while pulling my knees towards my chest.

"Mama… our mother," I started, hugging my knees, " was beautiful. She was kind, and gentle, and she loved plants and flowers and loved teaching me their names and meanings and uses…" I trailed off with a soft smile on my face.

"What about our father?" The grip around my knees tightened.

"He was a good man," I lied smoothly, then quickly moved on before he noticed the change in my mood. "But now, with them… gone, we have other good people taking care of us. Like Romario and the others. Our family."

"Where's that family now?"

"Well..." I drew the word out, looking to the side. "They don't really know where we are since we're a bit lost right now." He nodded again, still mulling over something. An awkward pause passed, then Dino suddenly grabbed my hand.

"Where are we going?"

"We're finding our family," he replied, pulling me along. "You're too young to be taking charge. After all," he smiled back at me, "big brothers are supposed to take care of their little sisters, right?"

For a second, I forgot about the clumsy, idiotic brother I was used to seeing and saw the strong leader Dino would grow to be. Seeing him in this light, my faith in my brother grew. I decided to put my faith in my brother and trust him to get us out of this, memories or not. I had faith in Dino.

* * *

><p>It took about an hour of wandering aimlessly around for all that faith and trust to fade. And yet, Dino was persistent.<p>

"We're getting nowhere," I droned from his back (After the first 30 minutes, I got tired, so I made Dino carry me on his back).

"I'm sure we'll find something," Dino said hopefully, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself more than me.

"Okay," I finalized, sliding off his back, "since this is clearly going nowhere, I think it's time for plan B, attempt 2." He stopped and turned back towards me.

"What's your plan, Sky?"

"Cloud."

"What's your plan, Cloud?" I looked around the area and grinned when I spied a proper sized tree branch.

"If you had your memories, you would be scared now," I warned him, hefting the branch over my shoulder like it was a baseball bat. Dino gulped and took a step back.

"W-what is your plan, exactly?" he stuttered, fearfully eyeing my branch.

"Well, I assume you lost your memories by hitting your head. With that assumption, my theory is that if you hit your head again, then your memories might come back."

"...might?!"

I shrugged, hefting the branch the branch into a swinging position and stepped towards Dino.

"Worth a shot!"

Dino didn't get far when he tied to run away. The branch hit his head with a definite thunk. Dino squealed (I kid you not, it was a full out girly, pig squeal) and rubbed his head. "What the heck, Storm!" I frowned.

"Hmm... must not have hit hard enough." Dino's eyes widened as I swung again, this time knocking him down. I stood over him for a while, waiting for him to respond (and to make sure I didn't kill him or anything). His eyes fluttered open and he stared at me blankly.

"Who are you?" I sighed and stepped away.

"This obviously isn't working," I muttered dejectedly.

Dino scrambled up and looked around. "Where am I?" I would have answered his question, but at that moment it started raining men.

...

I kid you, of course, but a baby did fall out of the sky and land a solid kick on Dino's head (which knocked him over. Again.)

"Ciaossu, Cloud," Reborn announced, sitting on Dino's head.

"Oh," I recovered from shock, "Hey, Reborn." Dino groaned from underneath him. Reborn jumped to my shoulder and we both watched my brother slowly pull himself up. He rubbed his head, blinking at us. His eyebrows knit together.

"Cloud, Reborn?" He looked around. "Where are we? Where's the mansion?" I glared at Reborn.

"You know I've been trying to do that for the past two hours, right?" He shrugged.

"What can I say? My kicks are insanely strong." I shrugged, not even trying to come up with a rebuttal to that argument; Reborn's kicks _were_ insanely strong.

"Hey! Cloud!" Dino grabbed my shoulders. "Where are we? Are we lost?" I smiled, standing on my tip toes to pat his head.

"It's okay, big bro'. We _were_ lost, but now Reborn's here to save us!" I couldn't keep a straight face and burst out laughing. "Ha! Reborn, saving us!" Ignoring my outburst, Reborn pulled out a radio out of nowhere.

"I found them. Bring it around." Suddenly, the wind picked up and a deafening sound penetrated the surreal silence of the forest. A helicopter appeared above us with Romario looking down and waving at us. Reborn jumped on my shoulder as the latter came down. I wasted no time getting on and climbing up. I assumed Dino was behind me, until I noticed the helicopter moving away and heard yelling below me. Once I got near him, Romario pulled me and the latter up and closed the door. I pressed my face against the window, looking down at Dino, who was yelling and waving frantically from below.

"Why're we leaving Dino?" I asked.

"It was Reborn's orders," Romario answered, trying to pry me away from the window to see if I had any wounds.

"Why did you leave Dino?" I asked Reborn, trying to avoid Romario. He shrugged.

"A week in the wilderness probably won't kill him." I accepted this statement. It was useless to argue with Reborn, afterall.

* * *

><p>Two weeks later we brought Dino back from his epic adventure in the woods. His first words to his adorable younger sister after two weeks of absence were, "You were okay with them doing this?"<p>

"Yep." He sighed.

"I hate you." I hugged him.

"Love you too, bro'!"

* * *

><p>One thing I had forgotten about being the sister of the young boss of one of the biggest mafia families is the possibility of being kidnapped. It happened when the security of the mansion was slacker than usual and easier to get into thanks to construction of a room Reborn had managed to destroy in the process of 'training' Dino. I assumed my kidnappers posed as workers and managed to nab me while I was taking one of my regular naps in the library (in hindsight, I probably shouldn't have been so slack with strangers milling through the estate, but it's extremely easy to forget that I am technically constantly in danger due to my bloodline).<p>

I suspected the use of a chemicals to keep me asleep while they moved me to a different location, since I woke up with an unfamiliar taste in my mouth. Before I opened my eyes, I moved my arms slightly, gauging the resistance of my bounds. I held back a smile as I noticed they were weak enough that if I moved around for a bit, I could easily slip my arms out. I then opened my eyes to take in the rest of my surroundings, and possibly alert my captors to my consciousness. I blinked and turned my head slightly, looking around the hotel room. I had to admit, it was a nice one. I held back another grin as I recognized the symbol the notepad sitting nearby. Already, within the first minute of waking up, I knew exactly where I was. My gaze drifted to the other two occupants of the room, who were currently sitting on the bed playing cards. One of them managed to look up and notice I was awake.

"The kid's awake," he nodded towards me. The other man turned his body to look at me.

"Don't try anything, brat," He said gruffly, gesturing with his head to the two guns sitting on the table near them. The two then went back to basically ignoring my existence completely. Oh well, that benefited me. I could work on wiggling out of my bonds while they ignored me. Ten minutes of silence later, I had the ropes loose enough to where I could easily slip my arms out. I looked back at the two men, planning my next move.

"So," I started, drawling out the word, "what family are you guys from?" The man farthest away was about to answer, but the other cut him off.

"Like we're going to tell you that," he scoffed. "Just keep quiet and shut up, brat."

"Isn't that the same thing?" I pointed out, looking away from the bottle of wine beside the man closest to me.

"She has a point, Cosimo" the other man admitted, scratching his chin. Cosimo's eye twitched.

"You," He pointed an accusing finger at the man, "don't agree with her, and you" he pointed at me , "be a good little hostage."

"I'm a bored little hostage if anything," I complained. "I mean, what do you expect me to do? Just sit here?" Cosimo answered with a yes as the other man answered with a no. A glare followed the answer.

"Well, you can't just expect the kid to sit there," the man tried explaining, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, she's a kid. She'll get bored."

"She's a hostage; only useful to get money from the Chiavarone," Cosimo reminded him. "This is why I'm in charge; you're too soft on kids."

"Can I have a say in this?" I continued before he could refute me. "I think, um… sorry, didn't catch your name?"

"Ennio," the nicer man replied.

"Lovely," I complimented, then continued, "I think Ennio has a point; if you want me to be good, then you gotta keep me occupied."

"And how do you suggest we do that, brat?" Cosimo asked, clearly not amused with this whole thing.

"We could deal her in," Ennio thoughtfully suggested.

"Of please," Cosimo scoffed, "as if a brat would want to-"

"Pull me up and deal me in," I chirped enthusiastically. Ennio happily obliged, and pulled my chair forward. Cosimo sighed in defeat and rubbed his temples, as I slipped my arms out of their bounds, gathered the cards and shuffled myself.

"You're really good at that," Ennio noted.

"Thanks," I nodded towards him in acknowledgement. "I usually shuffle and deal for the guys when they play, since they don't trust each other with card games."

"So you don't play with them?"

"Nah," I answered Ennio's question, trying not as I noted how Cosimo was reaching into his pocket from the corner of my eye. I relaxed when I saw that he was just getting a cigarette and lighter out, and continued the conversation. "They don't like it when I play."

"Hm? And why's that?" Cosimo asked, mildly interested and no longer as annoyed.

"Because I usually end up winning, or the team I'm on ends up winning. They say I'm lucky, and call me a good luck charm when I'm on their team. It's actually a hassle sometimes, since they scramble for me to on their team. Now, I usually I offer to deal, since others get mad when I'm not on their team."

"So it's all just luck?"

"Which is funny," I pointed out, "Since card games seem to be the only thing I'm lucky at."

"Well, we'll see just how lucky you are, brat," Cosimo sneered, looking at his hand smugly. I smiled cheekily back, hoping that neither of them had notice how close I was to the guns sitting on the table now.

* * *

><p>"This is Lucille, my girlfriend," Ennio showed me the picture.<p>

"She's pretty," I commented idly, mind fully focused on just how close I was to both the guns.

"She's all he ever talks about," Cosimo drawled. The bottle of alcohol was now completely empty. I knew I had to act fast, seeing that I didn't know when they were meeting with others, or if they had already contacted the Chiavarone in order to get ransom money. It had been half an hour since I had first woken up and started my slow escape plan. I had already located the keys to the hotel, and calculated a plan in my head, and now there was just one more simple step.

"How can I not talk about her," Ennoi said, blushing slightly. "She's prefect."

"It's sweet how much you love her," I said, shifting my body and arms closer to the table in one casual movement. "You know, Ennio, you're a nice guy."

"You really think so?" I nodded.

"That's why I almost feel bad about do this." In one more movement, I grabbed both the guns and pointed them at the two men.

"What! You br-"

"Uh-uh-uh," I scolded and nodded towards the guns in my hand. "I'm the boss now."

"A-are… you gonna kill us?" Ennio asked. I gave him an incredulous look.

"What? No. I'm six," I reminded them. I gestured towards the closet with the guns. "Be good little hostages and get in the closet."

"Now," I said to them through the close door, once they were securely locked in. "Here's what you did wrong; you didn't tie the bonds tight enough, you let yourselves get too comfortable around me, you drank alcohol on the job, you didn't move me far enough, you left out recognizable objects that could give away my location, you left your only weapons out in the middle, you let me get close to you and the weapons, but I will admit that Ennio is insanely good at Scopa."

"Thank y-" There was a loud thud.

"Don't thank her you bastard!"

"You guys are idiots," I concluded dryly. "Congratulations; you've been outwitted by a six year old."

* * *

><p>It took me a little under an hour to make it back to the mansion. I had assumed the family that kidnapped me (whatever family that may have been) had already contacted my family, but I was proven wrong when I causally walked into Dino's office and received.<p>

"Hey," I greeted him as I entered, sending a nod to Romario who was faithfully and to Reborn, who was sipping an expresso in the chair beside me, watching Dino like a hawk.

"Yo, Cloud! Where've you been?"

"Oh," I shrugged, "I got kidnapped for about an hour or three, but it's OK, they didn't hurt me or anything." They all stared at me. I counted done the seconds until Dino went into mother hen mode.

"WHAT?!"

Huh, ten seconds. That's a new record.

* * *

><p>"I don't see what I've done to deserve this."<p>

"Cloud," Dino gave me an exasperated look, "You've been kidnapped three times."

"And? I've escaped on my own three times too," I rebutted.

"Cloud, you got hurt last time." My hand immediately went to the bandages on my arm.

"Okay, so maybe I kind of get kidnapped a lot," I admitted, "and maybe I got hurt once. But I still don't think I deserve babysitters because of that!"

"You've just proven my point," Dino reminded me. "We can't just let you run around unprotected, wherever you go. It's dangerous for you, and I can't have you getting hurt, or kidnapped," he added with emphasis, "again. This is for your own good, 'sis."

"But 24/7 babysitters?" I whined, "Really? I don't want two grown men following around all day. No offense towards you guys of course," I said to the two men, Ivan and Bono, a.k.a. my new babysitters behind me. They nodded in understanding.

"Being related to the boss of one of the most influential families is extremely dangerous, Cloud," Reborn inputted with a serious tone. "Dino's right to keep at least some of his men with you to protect you at all times." I opened my mouth to refute, but then thought better of it. It was clear that this discussion had ended.

Arguing with Reborn was a death wish, after all.

* * *

><p>"So," I drew out the word, turning on my heel to face Ivan and Bono, who had been following me throughout the garden. "I know you guys have to follow orders and stuff, but… could you not? You're kind of messing up my groove."<p>

"You know we can't do that, princess." I huffed, then shrugged with a sigh.

"Well," I stated. "I tried." They blinked.

"Is… is that it?"

"Is what it?" I asked, not even bothering to turn around as I continued on my way.

"No elaborate plans to get rid of us, no grand schemes to escape?" Bono elaborated for me. I turned to them, nose scrunched.

"Nah," I brushed the notions off, "that's too much work. And besides, I only really do that stuff to mess with Dino. I mean, that's what sisters are supposed to do, right? That's a rhetorical question, Ivan," I cut him off before he could answer. "Plus, this is kind of an important thing, and I know he worries about me and stuff, so I guess I can stand a couple of babysitters." They smiled.

"I'm glad you can see it this way, princess." I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you guys can be my lackeys are something," I muttered thoughtfully. They frowned. "Or henchmen. Yeah, I like the sound of that," I confirmed, looking back up at them with a sly smile. "You guys can be my henchmen. That's much cooler than personal babysitters." They sighed in union as I turned around and merrily skipped along the path once again.

"Whatever you say, princess…"

* * *

><p>So apparently, even with the added protection of new 'henchmen' (I was slowly waning off the name after much convincing from said henchmen, but I was moving onto to 'personal stalkers', a title they despised even more), I still managed to get kidnapped. I, personally, would label that as talent. I highly doubt Dino would agree. The difference between this kidnapping and the others was that this was an actual semi-important and professional family (the others were smaller families that weren't being watched as closely because they weren't necessarily viewed as threats. However, they were also stupid enough to go after the Chiavarone, and therefore, were easily dealt with. Reborn used the word 'eradicated' but I think my way of putting it is nicer). They actually nabbed me while I was not sleeping for a change, and next thing I know I woke in an unfamiliar, dark room tied to a chair. After squirming around for a bit I decided that these bonds were too strong to break by force. Taking deep breathe, I decided to try to slide my way out of this (after all, I was studying the body and pressure points, I might as well put this to use), only to squeal in pain when I bent my shoulder a little too much which caused me to squirm in pain. This, naturally, caused me to fall over.<p>

As soon as I hit the ground an explosion rang out, shaking the room. I was confused for a second, knowing I didn't have any explosives in my pockets today and knowing that despite how much I ate, I was not heavy enough to shake the room when I fell. I only realized it was an attack on whoever kidnapped me when I heard running and yelling outside the door. The only question was if it was my family, an ally, or if it was someone else who wouldn't find any use for me. I tried to roll over to the corner of the room where I could hide in case someone _did_ come in, but just as I started moving, there was yelling outside my door. I tried to get to my destination faster, but the door opened before I could hide. I panicked.

"I'm the sister of the Chiavarone boss, so you could hold me for ransom as long as you keep me alive!" I enunciated, facing away from the intruder. I heard footsteps coming closer and then a hand roughly turned me over. I squeezed my eyes shut.

"...Cloud?" I opened my eyes.

"Squalo?" I blinked, then smiled.

"Hey, buddy! What are you doing here? How that there Varia job working out for you?" I tried to roll to a sitting position and failed. He shrugged and stooped down to cut my ropes.

"We're just teaching the Pesca Family a lesson. And the job's fine if you don't mine dealing with a bunch of fucking lunatics." I nodded, rubbing my poorly mistreated, sore wrists.

"Ah, so that's who kidnapped me." He raised an eyebrow.

"You got kidnapped, brat?" I nodded.

"Fourth time this year," I explained, grinning. Squalo rolled his eyes, easily believing me without too much convincing, then took to scanning the room.

"Nothing valuable in here."

"I take offence to that" I noted, frowning up at him.

He stood up and started to walk out of the room. When he realized I wasn't following, he turned back to me, scowling.

"You coming, brat?" I blinked.

"Oh," I said, "yeah." And I scrambled after him, skipping out of the room besides him. He rolled his eyes at my antics.

Despite the book war being our first meeting, Squalo and I have a good relationship. Well, I call it good, he would refer to it as mutual. Despite what you want to call it, we got along. In fact, I kind of viewed him as another older brother (another way to put it would be a brother from another mother). I also have this insane hope that he viewed me as his adorable little sister. In a way, I figured I could safely assume that he did. After all, I kept more in touch with him than even Dino, who actually went to school with him, did.

"So," I drawled, "Where we going?"

"Once we finish up here, we're heading back to HQ," Squalo explained, scanning the hallway for enemies. I frowned.

"You're not taking me back home?" I whined. Squalo sighed at my behavior.

"No, brat. We'll just contact the Bronco when we get back and have him pick you up." I frowned, not too happy about my delayed return, but still nodded in understanding. I suppose I could mess with the Varia for a little while. Just as I was completing this thought, Squalo pulled me back roughly. I froze, staring at the shiny surface of an unique looking knife and my slightly terrified expression in its reflection. An insanely creepy laugh echoed through the hallway as a figure approached. I took a small step behind Squalo, making sure he was somewhat in between myself and the owner of said creepy laughter.

"Oi, Captain, who's the girl? A hostage?"

"VOOOOI!" I winced at the sheer volume, "This brat's an ally, so you can't kill her!" I leaned out from behind Squalo, to get a better look at the stranger. He was younger, which surprised me, looking to only a couple years older than me, and naturally was taller. The blond took one look at me and snickered, twirling a knife in his hand. I stuck my tongue out at him in a childish gesture, considering myself to be safe under Squalo's protection. The boy frowned at my action and prepared to throw another knife at me.

"The Prince doesn't appreciate rude gestures, brat." I scoffed.

"Brat? You don't look that much older than me." Squalo, who was not amused with our bickering, grabbed my hand and dragged me onward, passing the creepy boy. Getting the hint that if we argued anymore, Squalo might possibly chop our heads off, we shut up and the boy fell into step behind Squalo, quietly snickering. I stared at him, and he stared at me (At least I think he did. I couldn't really tell with the hair covering his eyes). He broke the silence.

"State your name, peasant." I ignored the peasant part of the question.

"Cloud. Yours?"

"Prince the Ripper, Belphegor." My eyes widened. I felt slightly idiotic for not recognizing him sooner.

"Oh, cool," was my lame reply, completely smoothing over and pushing back my inner excitement. Belphegor frowned.

"Is the peasant not awed by my royalty?" I shrugged.

"Should I be?" His frown deepened, but before we could get into another argument, we entered a large room with three people standing in it. Well, three people and a bunch of dead bodies I was busy trying to ignore.

"VOOI!" Another wince from me, "You scum done yet?"

"Of course Squ-chan!" The one who I could only assume was Lussuria flicked his hand, "It was extremely easy mission after all~"

The tall, silent figure, who I recognized as Levi, only nodded in response. Then there was the floating baby who I knew was Mammon, who didn't even respond. Squalo seemed satisfied with their answers (or lack of answers).

"If we're done here then let's go." He began to walk out, still hauling me... and that was when Lussaria spotted me. There was a second where nothing happened and we just stared at each other. Then there was a blur and I was ripped away from Squalo, flung in the air and before I knew if Lussaria was rubbing his cheek against mine and suffocating me with his arms.

"Squ-chan! Where did you pick up this adorable doll!" Lussaria practically sang. I squirmed in the man's arms.

"Squalo, help! Can't breathe! Can't breathe!"

"Voi, don't kill her!" Squalo whipped around to Lussaria, who was pouting.

"So I can't keep her?"

"No!" Squalo growled, "That's the Chivarone Boss's little sister!"

"What's she doing here?" Mammon, who seemed to be the sanest one, asked the logical question.

"She got kidnapped," Squalo explained, ignoring my pleading looks. I was still being cuddled (crushed) by Lussaria.

"Ushishishi, how pathetic," Bel snickered at me. Levi remained silent, probably thinking about his beloved boss. Mammon, who was thinking of how I could benefit him, spoke again.

"What are we doing with her? If you don't care, I could sell her for ransom." Squalo rubbed his temples.

"We're not ransoming her and we're not keeping her!" he lashed out, "We're going back to headquarters where we'll contact her family and keep up with her until they come and get her. Is that clear?" They nodded. "Good," Squalo finalized and then begin to head for the exact, "Now let's get out of here, trash." Lussaria was glowing with the thought that he got to keep me for a while. I was pissed off at Squalo for leaving me with Lussaria. I sighed.

"Hey," I said , attempting to grab the attention of my captor, "You mind letting me down? I can walk on my own, plus you're kind of crushing me." He giggled (Yes. Giggled. It was terrifying).

"Sure, Doll!" he placed me down and I tried my hardest not to run up to Squalo's side. I didn't want Lussaria to grab me again. Bel walked beside me.

"So..." he sneered, "If you're the Chiavrone boss's little sister, what does that make you?" I thought about it and shrugged.

"I dunno, but some of the guys call me princess." He seemed to think about it. Then he laughed again, which confused me. I sighed, and gave up on trying to figure him out. That's when I bumped in Levi. Apparently the group had stopped walking. I looked up to apologize, but shrank back when I realized he was glaring at me. I quickly retreated behind Lussaria who patted me on the head sympathetically. Despite his strangeness, I'd prefer the flamboyant Muay Thai fighter over a pissed off Levi any day. Looking around, I noticed we were now standing outside a mansion (again, I made the conscious decision to ignore the blood and gore surrounding me). Squalo was looking for something in the sky, but I saw nothing. So, I turned to Lussaria, who I was growing more comfortable with by the minute.

"What are we waiting for?"

"The helicopter," he replied, "So, what's your name, doll?"

"Cloud."

"Adorable!" he cooed. I winced. "My name is Lussaria, but you can call me sorella if you want to."

"...I'd rather not." Luckily, before Lussaria could pursue the topic further, the helicopter arrived. Lussaria picked me up again, and before I knew it I was in the helicopter with the Varia members on my way to the Varia headquarters.

Lovely.

* * *

><p>"Yeah, Bedhead is OK and all, but Tea Tree is the bomb," I explained to Lussaria.<p>

"Then maybe I need to try it," he stated, "but I've been loyal to Bedhead for so long~" He whined and I rolled my eyes at his antics. I will happily admit that Lussaria isn't so bad once you get to know him. Although, that's probably just because he sees me as his new little sister. But, I do kind of see him as a big sister now (yet I would never actually say that to him or start calling him sorella). A comfortable silence passed and I ate another pocky stick. So far, my stay at the Varia has been comfortable. I've been given food, a nice comfy couch to sit on and I wasn't bored out of my mind. And then Lussaria shattered that.

"How about I give you a makeover," he leaned forward, smiling. I paled.

"How about no."

"Oooh! I can do your hair too, and you'll just look absolutely adorable!" Lussaria clapped his hands together, becoming caught up in the idea while I was shaking my head (slowly at first, but it become more vigorous as he continued). "I'll go get my things~" he jumped up and skipped out of the room, completely ignoring me. As soon as he was gone, I bolted out of the room, in the opposite direction Lussaria went in. I knew I was eventually going to get lost, but as long as I was escaping a make-up session with that man.

Me running away from Lussaria was what led me to meet Xanxus. Let me point out that I did not meet him on the best of terms. As I was running, I heard someone calling my name from behind me, and thinking it was Lussaria, I darted in the closest room and slammed the door behind me. I sighed in relief, and slid down against the door. Then I looked up only to see a gun pointed at me. I panicked.

"I'm the sister of the boss of Chiavarone, so you could hold me ransom as long as you don't kill me!" I said out of habit. I blinked, recognizing the person in front of me. Xanxus snorted (out of amusement?).

"What are you doing here, Brat?" Seeing that I was not a threat, he put his gun away and moved to sit behind a desk in what looked to be a thrown. He popped open a bottle of wine and started drinking it straight from the bottle. I realized that I caught him in a good mood. Lucky.

"I was kidnapped by the Pesca family and Squalo found me when the Varia was attacking them. So, he brought me back here until my family comes and gets me." I explained to him, trying to make it short and simple, hoping to please him. He didn't respond, so I assumed he approved of my explanation. That was the moment when Levi burst in.

"Boss, I brought you-" Levi spotted me. His face darkened. Then he tried to grab me, but I scrambled back.

"Brat! How dare you disturb the boss-"

There was a gun shot. Levi and I froze, staring at the new bullet whole in the wall.

"Scum," Xanxus seethed, "The brat was fine." he glared at Levi. "You're the one who's pissing me off!" Then all hell broke loose. While Xanxus was busy trying to shoot Levi, I saw the opportune moment to escape and avoid getting shot. Slipping out of the room, I ran down the hallway once more on my quest to avoid Lussaria. I thought back to Levi.

I should probably go out of my way to avoid him too.

* * *

><p>I ran into Bel. As in, running straight into and falling back onto the ground. He snickered, not even affected by the collision.<p>

"Looks like the princess is clumsy, ushishishi."

I scrambled back up. Frantically looking behind me. I sighed in relief when I saw only an empty hallway. Bel cocked his head.

"What are you looking for?"

"It's more like who's looking for me."

"Ushishi, then who's looking for you, princess?" He corrected himself.

"Lussaria," I replied, "he's set on giving me a makeover," I turned back to the prince,, with my nose scrunched, "Well, and Levi. I 'm pretty sure he's out for my blood as of now." Bel snickered.

"What'd you do to piss him off?"

"I didn't actually do that much. I just stumbled in on Xanxus, who wasn't even mad until Levi burst in and started yelling at me. Then there was a lot of gun fire and badda bing, badda bang, Levi hates me and probably is planning my demise as we speak." Before Bel could comment anymore, Lussaria's voice was heard off in the not so distant hallway.

"Cloud, dear! Where are you, sugar~" My eyes widened.

"Can't talk, gotta go." Bel caught me before I could run off.

"Whoa, Princess. Where ya' going? Don't you know that the Prince can help you?" My eyes narrowed.

"Why would you want to help me?" He shrugged.

"The Prince is bored, and you will serve as proper entertainment," he explained shrugging, "And I couldn't have my future wife dying from the horror of Lussaria's make overs." Now, I would have question Bel claiming me as his wife, but at that moment Lussaria rounded the corner.

"There you are, doll~" I looked at Bel.

"Let's go, hubby." he snickered and picked me up, sprinting away from Lussaria. The older man was out of sight quickly and Bel stopped at a door, opened it, threw me inside, and stepped inside himself. I landed roughly on my butt. After recovering, I looked around the room in horror, realizing that it was the messiest room I had ever seen in my entire life (and I thought my room could get pretty bad).

"Is this your room?" I questioned, almost hesitantly.

"Ushshishi, Of course, princess." I got up, brushing myself off, and turned towards him.

"Okay, then, now that we're relatively safe," I muttered, stepping over things to get to Bel, "will you please explain to me why I am now your wife." He cocked his head.

"Isn't it obvious?" I stared at him.

"Um, no." He laughed again.

"I am a prince," he explained, as if he was talking to a kid (well, he was, but that's not the point), "therefore the only one suitable enough to marry me is a princess. Since you're the only princess I know, then you are going to be my wife." I stared at him, speechless for a while.

"You know, that actually kind of makes sense," I noted, "but I'm pretty sure Dino won't allow anyone to marry me right now." I thought about it, then I smiled when a thought struck me. "How 'bout you be in my harem?" He scoffed.

"You have a harem?" I nodded proudly.

"Yep."

"Then who's in it?"

"Well, right now, only Squalo, who doesn't know it, so don't throw me under the bus.. or would it be the sword? Anyways, I'm working on putting more guys I meet into it. You wanna be in it?" He laughed.

"How about you be in my harem. After all, you will be wife one day. That is, unless I meet a more suitable princess." I thought it over.

"Let's compromise; I'll be in your harem, if you'll be in my harem. Deal?" I offered my hand. He put his own hand on his chin, thinking about my deal. He grinned and shook my hand.

"Ushshishi, deal." I nodded triumphantly. One more hot guy added to my harem. I plan on making Hibari, Yammato and others join it too when we go to Japan, but two will do for now. My stomach growled, ruining my victory.

"Hey, hubby, when's dinner?"

"Hmm..." Bel glanced at the clock on his bed stand (which was almost completely swallowed by stuff). "Should be done in a few minutes." He began to walk out of the room. I followed after him hesitantly, and looked both ways before completely exiting put into the hallway. Bel laughed at my behavior. I frowned.

"Are you sure it's safe?"

"More or less. Lussaria probably gave up already, and Levi won't try anything in front of Boss." Bel waved my worries off. I decided to swallow my fears and followed my harem member to the dining room.

* * *

><p>Dinner was surprisingly calm. I sat in between Squalo and Mammon, avoiding Levi's glare and eating steak. It was really good steak too, but I guess it would be, since Xanxus would eat no less than the best. There were very few arguments (well, it was more like Squalo just yelling) but over all, it was peaceful (as peaceful as the Varia could get).<p>

"So what did Dino say when you talked to him?" I asked Squalo in a slightly low voice so I wouldn't disturb anyone else. "I just hope he doesn't get mad and blame me for the whole thing…" I joked, but trailed off when I noticed Squalo's expression. Squalo froze, his fork halfway to his mouth. I stared at him.

"...you forgot to contact him, didn't you?" I asked, sighing. "And here I was wondering why they were taking so long."

"Does this mean that Cloud is spending the night?!" Lussaria cried, excitement radiating off of him. I stared at Lussaria with wide eyes and turned back to Squalo, gripping his arm.

"Please," I whispered urgently, "Go contact him now." Squalo pushed his chair back and stormed out of the room, muttering something about trash and scums. Nothing out of the ordinary in Squalo's vocabulary.

* * *

><p>Later, I sat outside the Varia headquarters, waiting for my family to pick me up. Squalo was standing in front of me, impatiently tapping his foot. Bel was sitting down next to me, snickering as usual and Lussaria was beside me, hugging my neck and practically crying.<p>

"Oh, my little Cloud! I'll miss you so much!" Lussaria pulled me closer to him, suffocating me once more. "Remember to keep in contact with your Sorella!" He was holding me too tight for me to respond. Squalo looked back, noticing my situation.

"VOI! Don't kill her! I'm pretty sure Bronco wants his sister back alive!" Lussaria loosened his grip and I used that chance to escape. I was gaining my breath back when the car pulled up.

"Well, that's my ride," I said, rising from the steps. I turned to Bel. "See ya' around, hubby."

"Bye, princess~" Next was Lussaria, who looked like he was preparing to hug me again.

"See you, Lussaria," I waved, slowly back away towards Squalo. The car stopped in front us and my brother rushed out of it, followed by Bono and Ivan.

"Cloud!" He grabbed me by the shoulders, bring me into a hug, "Are you OK? Are you hurt anywhere?" I laughed and hugged him back.

"I'm fine, Bro." Dino looked incredibly relieved. I frowned, noticing how tired he looked.

"Are you okay, Dino?" He sighed and nodded.

"I'm fine, I was just so worried about you. I just wish we knew where you were sooner." Squalo tensed behind me and Bel snickered again. I waved it off.

"It's all good now, I wasn't harmed." Dino smiled again and turned to Squalo as I moved on to hug Ivan and Bono. I'm sure they blamed themselves for what happened.

"Squalo," Dino greeted, "Thank you for taking care of my little sister." Squalo scoffed.

"The Chiavarone is an ally of the Vongola. I had to save the brat," was Squalo's lame excuse. Dino laughed and accepted it. I noted how my brother was becoming more comfortable talking to people and not slipping into a hot mess like he used too.

"Thanks anyway, Squalo," Dino turned back to me, a glint in his eye, "Let's go home, Cloud." I paled.

"A-actually, I might want to stay here a li-" Dino grabbed my arm and almost threw me in. He turned back to the Varia and waved them goodbye one last time.

"Help!" I managed to get out before Dino shut the door. As we started to drive off, Dino turned towards me with that glint in his eyes. I cowered, leaning into Ivan for comfort, knowing I was going to get the nagging of my life.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN:<em>**

**_Right now, this is the growing up arc for Cloud. The Original Arc Arc will start, of course, when Cloud is 14 and she tags along with Dino to Japan to torture Tsuna. Moving on, THANKS FOR EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED AND STUFF. REMEMBER REVIEWS ARE LOVE. Lemonheads are also love._**

**_-Klu_**

**_EDIT:_**

**_Gosh Golly, dudes, this had so many errors in it when I was reading over it, so I went back and fixed them out of shame. When I proof read this the first time, it was about 1 AM Sunday morning and my mom was nagging me to go to bed, so I was rushing. Anways, notes I just thought of now:_**

**_- I think I'm going to make Cloud and Bel be sorta kinda BFFs. I just like their relationship and I already have another little story planned for both of them (But it's when Cloud is 12)._**

**_-I REALIZED THIS WHEN EDITING. I HAD MISSPELLED XANXUS'S NAME LIKE XANUS AND I REALIZED WITHOUT THE Xs, XANXUS IS ANUS. WHY IS THAT SO ACCURATE? I LAUGHED FOR FIVE YEARS._**

**_Edit of Edit: _**

**_So, lots of fleshing out in this chapter, I redid the kidnapping scene, added some little things, and the Xanxas spelling thing is still hilarious to me. _**

**_Anyways, there's a review that I would like to bring up, pointing out that Lussaria may be transgender? Although I have done research, I have not found any canon evidence that says so. If Lussaria is trans, however, I would like to use proper pronouns, but I'm almost positive that Lussaria goes by male pronouns. It would be awful if I were using wrong pronouns and I just want to make sure and be positive on how I represent Lussuria. _**

**_Thanks!_**


	5. Bang Bang

**Chapter 5: Bang, Bang**

**Cloud: 6/7**

**Dino: 15/16**

**Disclaimer****: If I owned KHR, the ending would be way different and Hibari would be in every chapter. So would Chrome.**

**Pssst... there's a Parks and Recs reference in here. **

* * *

><p><strong>"We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths; in feelings, not in figures on a dial. We should count time by heart-throbs."<strong>

**-Unknown**

* * *

><p>"Hey, Reborn, I need to as- Crap!"<p>

I ducked as the whip almost nailed me in the face. "Ha!" I triumphantly jumped back up only to have the whip come back and hit me in the back of my head, knocking me down.

"Cloud!" Dino looked back at me, but was forced to return his gaze to the opponent in front of him. I pushed myself up and looked at him.

"Is that a bear?"

"Of course it is," Reborn jumped down from the rock he was perching on and walked over to me as I shifted into a sitting position. I barely nodded to him as a greeting, focusing on Dino's desperate fight with the bear. "So," Reborn started, "what did you want to ask me?"

"Oh", I muttered, remembering what I came out here for, "yeah, I was wondering..." I scratched my head awkwardly, "If you could maybe, kind of, sort of teach me a little self-defense?" He stared at me. "You know," I lowered my voice (even though Dino was too preoccupied trying not to get mauled to pay attention to our little conversation), "so Dino won't worry about me so much." Reborn smirked.

"I didn't know you cared so much." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Hey, I care!" I defended, then my expression turned thoughtful as I brought my knees up to hug them. "Look, I know that Dino has a lot on his plate right now with taking over the family so suddenly and having to clean up after Papa for the whole financial thing and I just don't want for him to have one more thing to worry about." I looked at the tutor, waiting for him to answer. He smiled. And I mean a full smile, not just a regular smirk. It was terrifying.

"Well I suppose I could take on another Chaivarone kid as a student."

I suddenly regretted asking.

* * *

><p>"This is a semi-automatic pistol."<p>

I nodded.

"Here." He handed me the gun. I took it and gave the hitman a questioning look.

"...so you're just handing a six year old a gun?" He nodded. I stared. "Ok, then." Ivan and Bono fidgeted uneasily behind me, obviously not comfortable with the fact that the little girl they knew all too well being handed a loaded gun. With the track record I have, I didn't blame them. Reborn pointed to a human shaped cut out target a little ways off.

"Hit that target." I nodded again, aiming the pistol at the target. I fidgeted, feeling Reborn's stare.

"Don't you need to make sure Dino wasn't killed by that bear?" I asked hopefully. Reborn's expression didn't change.

"He'll be fine. Shoot the target." I sighed, then he added, "before I shoot you." I swallowed, aiming once more at the target, feeling sorry that Dino had to deal with this pressure radiating off Reborn every day. A sudden calmness came over me as I focused, aiming for the cut out's chest. I took a deep breathe in and as I breathed out, I pulled the trigger. My eyes shifted to the neck next, and another tug at the trigger, then the forehead and another loud bang echoed around us. I focused on the whole target and saw three pretty holes; one in the chest where the heart would be, one in the throat and one in the forehead. If that was a man, he would be deader than dead. Reborn nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. Better than Dino his first time shooting a gun," Reborn noted. "Have you ever shot a gun before, Cloud?" I shrugged.

"I play a lot of shooting arcade games." Reborn seemed to except this answer, then he frowned thoughtfully.

"You need to practice shooting moving targets," he stated thoughtfully. Bono and Ivan tensed behind us. I cocked my head.

"You want me to shoot people?" Reborn smirked, an idea forming in his head.

"Yes."

* * *

><p>I scowled as I looked through the scope, my target moving again.<p>

"Stay, still won't ya' buddy?" I muttered angrily, even though Romario was about 800 meters away from me.

"Princess, are you sure this is good idea?" Ivan asked from behind me. We were currently on the roof of the mansion, over-looking the garden. I was carrying out the mission Reborn gave me.

"Yeah, yeah, it's all cool," I replied, smiling as Romario finally stopped moving and my hand closed in on the trigger. "It's just a paint gun sniper rifle." I pulled the trigger, watching through the scope as blue paint splattered over his chest. He looked up in alarm, bringing out a gun out of his jacket and trying to zero in on my location. I snickered. Ivan and Bono sighed from behind me. "24," I said in satisfaction. Reborn had charged me with the task of sniping 30 people with the paint ball sniper rifle. Where he had gotten a hold of a paint ball sniper rifle, I had no idea. Then again, it was better not to question Reborn. I spied another maid walking out of the house, and was proud to say that it took less time than usual to focus on her and shoot. She screamed as yellow paint exploded on her back. "25," I sang. Looks like the last three hours of frustration had paid off.

"Just 5 more..." Ivan muttered. I scrunched my nose and looked back at him.

"Are you complaining? You know you guys can leave, right?" They chuckled.

"And risk being sniped by you when we get down there?" Bono teased, "No thank you. I don't think either Ivan or I feel like being 26 and 27." I rolled my eyes and went back to my sniping. I grinned wickedly as I saw an especially interesting target walk into view. I cackled. Ivan raised his eyebrow.

"Who are you targeting now?"

"Dino," I answered. They paled.

"I don't think that's such a good idea, Princess," Ivan stammered. I waved him off with my free hand.

"Foohey. I'm fine as long as he doesn't know it's me."

"I'm pretty sure you're the only one who would be doing something like this, Princess."

"...shut it, Bono. As long as he doesn't see me, he can't prove it was me." I smirked as I focused in. A clear shot. I took it, hitting Dino in the back of his head, tainting his blond hair with green. I looked up from the scope, to fully take in the glory, only to see Dino spin around, rubbing the back of his head. Even from this distance, I could tell he was looking at me.

"CLOUD!" I turned around to face Ivan and Bono.

"Time to change spots," I said hurriedly, packing up the equipment and rushing towards the roof door. They sighed and followed me, like the faithful henchmen they are.

* * *

><p>"Cloud, repeat after me: I will not snipe family members."<p>

"..." He glared at me. I sighed.

"I will not snipe family members," I grumbled.

"Sniping family members is not fun and is not a good past time." I was going to argue that it was indeed fun, but his glare smothered my words of rebellion.

"Sniping family members is not fun and is not a good past time."

"I will never do this again."

"By never do this again, do you mean never snipe again, or never snipe family members? I'm okay with not doing the second one"- even if it diminishes my number of perfectly good targets (but I didn't say this out loud for fear of death)- "but I'm pretty sure that as I get better, my sniping and shooting skills will come in handy." Dino sighed and rubbed his temples.

"The second one."

"Ok, then," I made a few popping noises and swung my legs from the chair I was sitting in, "Can I go now?"

"Did you learn your lesson?" I nodded enthusiastically.

"Family is meant to be loved and cherished, not used for target practice... even though Reborn told me to do it." I recited, saying the last part quickly and quietly.

"Close enough," Dino said approvingly, "You may leave."

"Yay!" I jumped out of the chair and ran out the office, feeling much like I was running out of a principal's office. Dino turned to Reborn as I left and stared at him accusingly. Reborn nonchalantly sipped his espresso. The baby raised a questioning eyebrow.

"What is it, pip-squeak Dino?" Said pipsqueak's eye twitched.

"You gave my 6 year old little sister permission to shoot at people?" Reborn shrugged.

"She didn't _not _shoot at people when I gave her permission."

* * *

><p>"The prince is bored," Bel stated as he lazily continued throwing knives into the wall, making a crown shape.<p>

"News flash," I sarcastically informed him form the other side of the couch, lightly kicking his knee. "I'm bored to. What do you want me to do about it?"

"Fix it, of course," he answered back as if it were obvious. Before I would ask how I would go about doing this, Squalo walked in. His eyes flitted over me and Bel lounging on the couch, then refocused on me once more.

"Why the hell are you always here, brat?" He asked me with a raised eyebrow. I blinked, then shrugged, having never really thought much on the subject.

"I don't know. Nothing really to do at home; I've read all the books in the library, Dino's too busy for me to bug him, TV is just boring and I've beaten all my video games. So, I thought, 'hey, why not go hang out with your favorite assassination group?' and here I am."

"Why the fuck aren't you guys doing something then?" Squalo asked gruffly, crossing his arms. "You know, kid stuff? Go play outside or some shit like that instead of just taking up space in here?"

"It's raining outside," I informed the swordsman glumly. "And we beat Bel's last video game last week."

"She also doesn't want to come with me to hunt hitmen," Bel added, now done with his wall project and inspecting it with a critical eye.

"I already told you, Bel," she sighed, turning to look at the prince, "that's only fun for you. Killing local hitmen is your favorite past time, not mine." Bel huffed, the air ruffling his bangs.

"You're no fun, princess~" Squalo's eye twitched and he growled in frustration.

"Vooi! What the hell? Aren't you guys kids? Aren't little shits like you supposed to be hyper and running around and all that shit? You guys are pissing me off with your laziness and what not!"

"Then what exactly do you think we should do, captain?" Bel drawled lazily, laying his head back on the arm of the couch.

"If you're so worried about what we do, then why don't you do something with us?" I asked innocently, blinking up at him sweetly.

"Ushishi, yeah, you could teach the princess something useful. You know she needs it," Bel agreed, his trademark grin slipping onto his face. I smiled widely.

"Yeah,_ Squaaaaalo_," I happily dragged his name out, seeing the regretful look in his eye that he was trying to hide. "Why don't you teach me something?"

"What the fuck could I teach you, brat?" Bel and I looked at his sword simultaneously. Squalo's eyes narrowed.

"Oh, hell no."

* * *

><p>"Why don't I get a real sword?"<p>

"I am not giving you a real sword." I huffed, puffing my cheeks out, glanced at my measly wooden training word, then glared up at Squalo, whose dead-pan stare remained fixated on me.

"Ple-"

"No. Now, ready position." I released the air I was holding, having realized that complaining was, and hadn't gotten me anywhere for as long as we had been practicing. As soon as I readied myself, my sword was, yet again, knocked out of my hands. I sighed and looked after it, rubbing my poorly mistreated hands.

"This isn't fun anymore," I complained. Bel snickered from his position, leaning against the wall, watching our 'lesson'.

"I think it's hilarious."

"That's because you haven't been getting a wooden sword knocked out of your hands for the past half hour," I pointed out. I squeaked when I felt a light jab in my side.

"Oi, you're the one who wanted me to teach you the basics, brat," Squalo reminded me with a smug smirk.

"Yeah, because I was bored and thought that this would be fun…" I muttered quietly. Squalo's eye twitched.

"The art of sword fighting it not supposed to be fun!" He argued. "It's supposed to be taken seriously, not treated like a fucking game! Now pick your sword back up and g-"

"What the hell are you doing, trash?" We looked over to see Xanxus leaning in the doorway.

"VOO! I'm teaching this brat how to defend herself! What the fuck are you doing?!" Xanxus raised one eyebrow, looked at me then back at Squalo.

"You're teaching the brat?"

"I'm teaching her how to use a fucking sword, you shitty boss!" Xanxus snorted, seemingly amused.

"That's an easy thing to learn, even with a shitty teacher like you," he muttered, bringing the bottle of wine he was holding up to his lips.

"Like you could teach her anything," Squalo scoffed. It was a barely a twitch, but I managed to catch it when Xanxus's eyelid moved. He fixated a hard glare on Squalo, then through down a now empty bottle. Then, he stormed over to us, grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the room, basically picking me up off my feet in the process.

"Voi! What the fuck are you doing?" Squalo questioned, following behind us.

"I'm going to teach the brat something that's actually important," Xanxus muttered darkly. I decided to stay quiet during this argument, instead looking back and mouthing 'help me' to Bel. He snickered quietly and waved happily as we excited the room. My face paled, having no idea what Xanxus was going to teach me.

* * *

><p>"You see this wine?"<p>

I nodded, probably a little too quickly. Luckily, Xanxus didn't seem to notice as he was gazing at the wine bottle we had pulled out from under his desk a little too lovingly.

"This is the best fucking wine in the world," he established, then pointed at the label. "Remember this name brat. This will be the best thing you'll ever drink."

"…. I'm six," I stated.

"Was I offering you a drink, brat?" I shook my head again. He scoffed, then proceeded to put the bottle back wherever he first got it from (I was too cautious to look where that was. For all I know, he has a wine cooler under his desk. He probably does, actually), only to pull out another wine bottle of a different brand. I watched as he drank straight form the bottle, shuffling my feet awkwardly. He seemed to notice my discomfort, which caused him to raise another eyebrow at me (this seemed to be his way of communicating with me).

"Is that it?" I asked, deciding to talk first, to end the awkward stare-off we had engaged in. "Is that all you're going to teach me?"

"Was I a shitty teacher?" It was a dangerous question.

"No, it's just that…" I struggled, thinking of a good answer that wouldn't anger him. "I'm just impressed that you could teach me so much in so little time?" My answer seemed to amuse him. He snorted, then took another drink of his bottle. I stared at him a while longer.

"Okay, then," I broke the silence, beginning to back away. "Thanks for the lesson? I'll be sure to tell Squalo you were a better teacher than him." He nodded in acknowledgement, barely sparing me a glance. I slipped out the door, closed it, and stood there blinking for a minute.

"Well," I muttered, "I guess I can put that on the ever growing list of weird situations with Xanxus."

* * *

><p>Walking down the stairs, heading to the kitchen with a sleepy demeanor and bedhead, the last thing I expected to find were numerous prettily made-up girls in the parlor. I stopped dead in my tracks and stared blankly at them. A few of them seemed to notice me.<p>

"Aw, are you the little sister?" One bent down, cooing. In normal circumstances, I would retaliate with my little girl charm, especially seeing that the others were beginning to notice me as well, but seeing that it was relatively early in the morning (the ungodly hour of nine) and I was extremely confused, I opted for getting out of the situation as soon as possible.

"Romario," I whined loudly, seeing his familiar face gently pushing his way through the dense crowd of females. His head turned toward me immediately, and he rushed to pick me up. Eventually, after pushing through the crowd once more, we managed to slip into Dino's office; the location where a majority of the girls seemed to have clustered around.

"Will someone please explain," Dino gritted, rubbing his temples and leaning back in his chair, "why all these girls here, saying that they all have a 'date' with me?" I looked around at the other men around me, who I knew were mostly responsible for scheduling Dino's appointments.

"Well…" Lino began, looking away awkwardly.

"This is actually kind of embarrassing boss," Santo inputted from my other side. "You're gonna laugh at this boss!" Santo laughed, attempting to lighten the mood. Dino's facial expression didn't change. Lino and Santo shared a glance, then sighed in defeat.

"You know how you told us that you didn't want to be troubled with all the date request from the daughters of small families?" Lino started. "But you also said that Mr. Reborn told you not to say no to those girls 'cause it would be rude?"

"A mafia boss should never be rude to the ladies," Reborn reminded Dino from where he was sitting on the corner of the desk. This caused Dino to grumble even more.

"I don't see where this is going, guys," He reminded them.

"See boss, we had a real dilemma on our hands," Santo picked up. "We had to say no to them, but we couldn't be rude to them for your sake. But then the princess here gave us a great idea." I perked up at the mention of me, but then soon became worried.

"She came by one day, and saw that we were stressed. So, she asked about it and we told her our problem." I grew more and more worried as Santo continued, having no recollection of this conversation yet. "She had the great idea to schedule the dates on a day that didn't exists."

"And that day was….?" Dino asked, despite already knowing the answer himself.

"March 31st," Lino answered miserably. All eyes then turned to me.

"In my defense, I don't remembering telling the-" I stopped, eyes widening. "Oh. Okay, I do remember this now. But, I seriously thought that March 31st was not actually a date."

"How did you not know it was a real date?" Dino groaned, throwing his hands up.

"They didn't know either!" I argued, attempting to throw the blame back on Lino and Santo.

"You're the one who said it wasn't a date in the first place," my brother reminded me. "And now I have over 50 dates today, and I can't send them away or Reborn will kill me!"

"Dino, that really sounds like you're prob-"

"You're the one at fault here!"

"Boss," Romaria stopped him, putting his hand on his boss's shoulder. "I think we all should calm down, and face this problem with a cool head." Dino closed his eyes tightly, and let out a deep breath.

"Okay," he said. "Okay. Now," He looked back around the room, "how do we fix this?"

"Since you can't say no to them-"

"Because that would be rude, pipsqueak-Dino," Reborn interrupted Lino, with a malicious glint in his eyes. Dino shivered and Lino continued.

"Right. Since boss can't say no to them, why don't we just shift the responsibility to someone else? Put them in a position to say no."

"But whoever that person is, it would have to be someone that would be impossible to get mad at. The last thing we want is a bunch of angry girls on our hands," Romario inputted.

"So someone who can say no, but will be able to get away with it?" Dino mumbled, sending the other occupants of the room into a moment of deep thinking, excluding myself, simply because I considered myself to be in the clear and no longer involved. Which is why I was surprised to look up and see the others staring at me. I blinked sheepishly, beginning to feel uncomfortable again.

"…what?"

* * *

><p>I swung my legs from the chair and stared lazily at the clipboard on Dino's desk, waiting, listening, as Romario acknowledged the large group right outside the door.<p>

"Because he hold his little sister is such high regards and cares for her opinion so much, will not be seeing anyone for a date until they pass the approval of his younger sister. He views this as important because he values her so." I snorted and spun around in the chair out of boredom, having stopped listening as Romario began to direct them in some kind of order. I recalled the earlier conversation, describing my job for the day; reject all the dates, and act so adorable and innocent that they can't get mad at me or Dino. We all agreed (well, I reluctantly agreed) that this solved all the problems; Dino wouldn't have to deal with anyone, I was cleaning up the mess I had made, and Reborn wouldn't have to kill his student. Although this wasn't the most exciting job in the world, I figured I could do this for Dino. And, there was the small fact that I _did_ cause this whole thing, but I seriously believed with all my heart that the 31st of March did not exist.

I stopped spinning as I heard the door open and grabbed the clipboard and a pen, ready to take on the first wave of 'dates' for my brother.

* * *

><p>"Do you like cats?"<p>

"I love cats! They're just adorable!"

"Ah? Really?" I glanced up from my horribly drawn cartoon version of Squalo riding a shark. "I hate them." The girl's smile faltered.

"What's your favorite movie?" I moved on, moving on from my completed drawing of Squalo to start on a badly drawn cartoon version of Bel.

"I've always loved Il postino personally, because it truly expresses the beauty of poetr-"

"Sorry," I interrupted, getting another idea for a drawing of Lussaria instead of Bel, "The correct answer is The Rocky Horror Picture Show."

* * *

><p>"And how old are you?" I tried not to stare at the obviously older woman sitting in front of me.<p>

"Does age really matter? What truly matters is love!" She said dramatically.

"No," I corrected her, shaking my head. "Age matters. Age matters a lot. Especially since he's just 16. Next."

* * *

><p>By the time the last girl came in, I had finished my picture of Lussaria and had added a picture of Bel as Wesley from the Princess Bride. What made me look up from my badly drawn master piece was the attitude of the last girl I was 'interviewing'. While all the others had immediately put off an air of eagerness to impress and win me over, this one was different.<p>

There was a certain casualness and softness about her and the way she held herself. She was someone you wouldn't notice immediately, and yet were still somehow attracted to her demeanor. She walked with a grace and elegance I wasn't used to seeing, especially around Dino. She had a soft face with intelligent eyes and immediately gave a warm, but apologetic smile when she met my gaze.

"You're Cloud, right?" She was one of the few that had actually used my name. I nodded, and she continued. "I'm Gabriela. I'll be honest with you, I have no interest in getting to know your brother in the same way the others do. I came today so my father would stop bothering me about it. I would have left earlier, but I found an interesting book and began reading it while I was waiting," she said, pulling a familiar book out from under her arm and putting it on the desk. "I had heard that the younger sister of the Chiavarone heir was smart, but I did not expect to see her name on the inside of a medical book." She chuckled, which caused me to smile.

"It was a gift form Dino last year," I explained, grabbing the book and opening it to the inside of the cover, where Dino's (much improved since Reborn came) handwriting scrawled out a happy birthday note. "I asked him for more medical books since I had read all the ones in the library."

"That's very impressive for someone your age," Gabriela commented. "I was not at that level at your age, even though I started studying around that time."

"You study in the medical field?" She nodded gently.

"There wasn't much else for the younger sister of an heir to do. I stayed to talk to you because I thought you would remind me of myself as a child. I was right," She concluded. "I'm just glad I had gotten something besides my father off my back when I came here today." My smile grew wider.

"I'm glad you came too."

* * *

><p>My seventh birthday turned out to be a very important and life changing event. Typically, when the members of the Chiavarone family celebrate, we <em>celebrated<em>. Full blown out balls and parties for our family's extreme amount of members. This was because of my father before Mama died. But now he… isn't here anymore to do this the parties and balls and galas stopped. IN a way, I was glad that they did. It would make me think of him and I just don't want to about him or her... or them. I just can't think about them anymore. I know I probably shouldn't keep pushing these thoughts back and I know that it will eventually harm me, but right now, in the present, I don't care.

Ah, I went off on a tangent.

So we didn't have a party, but something else happened to fall on the date of June 16th. And that something was Dino's inheritance ceremony. Apparently, nobody told me that he wasn't the official boss yet. They didn't realize what date it fell on, and truthfully I didn't realize until much later that day that it was my birthday. We were just so busy getting things ready and what not. Invitations were sent out early. All the big bad important families were invited. The Varia was invited too, which made me excited (I was haven't see my harem members in a while, after all and they're had been a lull in our communication recently for a reason that would become obvious later). It was all a blur really, until it happened. Ivan and Bono were busy elsewhere so they weren't guarding me today. It happened about ten minutes before the ceremony officially started. I was going through a back hallway to get to the front of the ceremonial room. I was expected to stand near Dino as he was formally inherited the title of boss. I was a bit sulky, since I didn't get to see who was here before hand, but I figured I could always bug people afterwards.

That's when I noticed I was being followed. The moment I turned around, two men rushed out at me. I saw a glint and dodged to the right before a red hot pain bloomed on my left shoulder. By this time I had managed to retrieve my automatic pistol from beneath my dress. I shot once, but before I could even tell if I hit anything, the man in front of pushed me roughly against the wall and twisted my left arm behind me in an unbearable and awkward position. I gasped with pain as he twisted it. I heard something crack and felt nothing. And then the pain hit. Not thinking (did I ever really think throughout this?) I shoved the gun into what felt like his stomach. I shot, point blank. I think blood splattered on my face, but I wasn't so sure. All I was aware of was the man screaming in pain and pushing himself off of me only to fall to the floor, coughing up blood (in fact, there was blood everywhere). He might of started to vomit, but I was too wrapped up in my own pain.

My whole left arm including the shoulder was on fire. I slowly hefted my right arm (my useful arm) and ran it along my shoulder until I felt something sticking out. A knife. I took a shaky breathe, and prepared to take it out of the shoulder it was embedded into, not thinking clearly. I yelped in pain the moment I tried to move it. I tried to focus on something else to distract myself from the pain, but I regretted it when I looked up. The man who was coughing up blood earlier was not moving. Blood was seeping out from under him, making a grand puddle of red on the floor.

I wondered if they had started the ceremony yet. I smiled at the thought of Dino awkwardly excepting the title in front of so many people. He seemed pretty nervous last night. He could of tripped on the way up there... I laughed; a gargled, choking sound. No worries, I thought, he wouldn't trip with all the guys around.

I wonder how long I've been sitting here...? My eyes widened, thinking of blood loss. This led me back to the man and the red sea beneath him. That's when I remembered it was my birthday.

I killed a man on my birthday. I wanted to laugh. I wanted to cry. I wanted to throw up out of disgust. I did throw up. I shot a man, point black in the stomach.

It was self-defense.

_Murderer._

He would have killed me

_Murderer._

I killed a man on my birthday.

_A merry birthday, to a merry murderer._

* * *

><p>I think it was Squalo who found me on the verge of conscious. Of course, that might have just been my imagination. I couldn't really trust myself at the time.<p>

"Brat? Cloud?!" I blinked up at him slowly, squinting my eyes. He ignored the dead body in front of me (I suppose the other guy ran off. Maybe I shot him after all and he's dead too) and went straight to me, immediately checking my wounds. He looked me in the eyes, noticing I was nodding off. He scowled.

"Voi! Brat, you better stay with me." He cradled me and picked me up, causing me to yelp. His scowl grew deeper as he further examined my arm. He might of muttered something about a 'nasty break' but I wasn't listening. I was once again looking at the dead body. I start crying, tears streaming down my eyes.

"I-I killed him..." I choked out through sobs. Squalo just looked at me with pity and then rushed out of the room. I realized the irony of this; I was crying to an assassin about killing somebody. I wanted to laugh, but they only came out as more sobs. Squalo yelled something as we burst into another room. I heard murmurs that rose to shouts. I was nodding off again. Squalo noticed and tried to wake me up again. I looked up at his blurry image. It looked like he was scowling. Then again, he's always scowling. He laid me on the ground, which cause me to whimper in pain when my arm was moved so suddenly. Squalo's blurry silhouette was replaced with an unfamiliar one. Words were murmured: blood loss, shattered, unclean, burn, removal. Nothing made sense to me. Did anything make sense in the first place? I thought of the man again. I wanted to throw up again. I want to laugh. I wanted to yell at someone. I want to cry.

I wanted to be stronger.

I want to be stronger.

I want to sleep.

I want to dream.

And so, despite the attempts to keep me awake

I rebelled.

I dreamed.

* * *

><p>I woke up. There was pain. There was nausea. There were memories and finally regret. Then there were voices. I didn't open my eyes immediately, wanting to listen in, not ready to be awake.<p>

"...she's way too young to have to kill someone."

"This is the mafia, Dino. It's hard to accept, but the minute she was born into this family things like this were bound to happen. It's life."

"It's unfair!" I almost winced. "If Squalo hadn't noticed she wasn't there, then she could be... I didn't notice she was gone!" There was a sound of what I assumed was Dino falling into a chair. He sounded tired. I felt guilty.

"Well, she's here now. There's no need to dwell on 'could be's, Dino." I heard a sigh.

"You keep telling me that I'm going to be some great boss, Reborn. But how can I be a great boss if I almost let my own sister die?" I tensed. Was it really that bad?

"You had no choice in this Dino. If you weren't the boss, then it would have been Cloud. Would you really want to put that on her?" There was silence. Then Dino spoke.

"I... don't want to be mafia boss... but I want to protect my family. Cloud, the Chiavarone, they are my precious family. If they get hurt..." He trailed off. I heard footsteps walk closer to me. Something grabbed my right hand and squeezed it affectionately.

"So," Dino continued, "I decided, to make sure they don't get hurt, I will embrace my title." I could almost hear Reborn smirking.

"You've grown," the hitman stated, "but you've got a longs way to go, Pip-squeak Dino." There was a sad chuckle. I opened my eyes, only to be blinded. When my eye sight recovered I commented.

"Wow, bro. That's like the deepest speech ever." Dino's eyes widened.

"Cloud! You're OK!" There was evidence of tears in his eyes.

"Staying alive," I breathed out weakly, attempting to bring some humor in. My humor faded as I got a good look at Dino. His eyes were red and there were bags under them. I couldn't help it. I started crying again. I was weak.

"I'm sorry to make you worry, Dino," I sniffed pathetically, "Sorry about almost dying and stuff." I wiped my nose with my one good arm. Dino stared at me, dumbfounded. Then there was this look on his face that made me think he was going to slap me.

"Cloud, it wasn't your fault," he stated strongly (I'm glad he had enough sense not to grab me by the shoulders for emphasis). "It was just some low-life family who thought they could threaten us."

"But, Dino," I babbled, "I...I killed someone." More tears. Weakness. Dino seemed to grow angrier at my distress.

"And that's not your fault, Cloud." I looked away from him, wanting to avoid eye contact. That's when I saw the rest of the room.

"Is... is this all for me?" I asked, trying to take in the dozens upon dozens bouquets of flowers. My question brought Dino out of his anger. He nodded and held my hand again.

"There's many people who love you, Cloud." Reborn hopped onto the bed.

"Most of them are from members from your family," Reborn explained, "but some of them are from others." He handed me one filled with ruby red roses. I fumbled to hold them, but Dino helped me (note to self: casts are horrible. Never break a body part again). I read the greeting card.

_Hope the princess is doing well~ _

_Wouldn't want my future wife to die or anything (it is hard to find princesses now a days)._

_Your 'Hubby'_

_Prince the Ripper_

I was handed another bouquet, a bigger, more outrageous one with exotic flowers I had never seen before and peacock feathers sticking out. I already had a pretty good guess of who it was before I read the card.

_Cloud-dearest,_

_Your Sorella misses you so much! Hope you heal up soon so you can come visit!_

_with loads of love,_

_Lussaria and Squalo (who wanted me to put his name on here to not seem like 'a heartless bastard'. His words, not mine, dearest)_

I smiled. I read more that were handed to me one by one. Gabriela sent flowers, and a new medical kit. Ivan, Bono and Romario stopped by to check on me. I was loved.

I laughed. It was seemed like it had been years since I laughed, when I know it had only been so little days ago. But that was time, and time didn't matter.

"You're right Dino," I said, pulling him into an awkward embrace with my right arm, "I do have family that loves me."

Because time doesn't matter when you have family.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**OK, it is like my dream to be in a huge accident that could kill me, survive and start singing "Staying Alive". Is that weird? Then again, I'm weird. I liked writing this. Has lots of emotions and what not! And the slightest bit of character development (there will be more next chapter).**

**I updated really quick, but I'm stage managing the Christmas show, so I'm about to get really busy again. I feel really inspired for this story now, so Don't be surprised if there is another update this week (then again, don't be surprised if there's not).**

**THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS PEEPS. AS ALWAYS, REVIEWS AND LEMONHEADS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: I wanted to introduce Gabriela in somewhere, and she fit in here. She'll come in waaaaaay later on in the story, but so will a lot of other things from this arc too. I added a Varia story and I revised another. Hell yeah. The start of the character development arc in the growing up arc.**


	6. Wait, you're going where?

**Chapter 6: Wait, you're going where?**

**Cloud: 7**

**Dino: 16**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR. Cloud, on the other hand, is my conscious... don't know how I should feel about that.**

* * *

><p><strong>"How does one become a butterfly? They have to want to learn to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar."<strong>

**-Trina Paulus**

* * *

><p>"Hey, Reborn?" The moment I walked in the room, it exploded. Well, the room itself didn't explode, but there was an explosion in the room. Either way, it made for a shitty entrance on my part. I waved my hand in the air in a useless attempt to clear the smoke and coughed. It seemed like they were going over math again. The smoke finally cleared enough to where I could clearly see Reborn, who was wearing a gas mask and holding an already pressed detonator, and Dino was covered in black soot and passed out. I sighed.<p>

"Do you always have to be doing dangerous stuff when I want to talk to you?" He shrugged.

"I suppose you're just unlucky." I walked over to Dino and poked him. He twitched.

"Not as unlucky as him."

"So, you wanted to talk to me?" I nodded and rubbed my arm, the one that had been broken, lightly. It took about 2 or so months for it to pretty much fully heal. My shoulder healed up a little bit before that. I was lucky on the broken arm; it didn't go through the skin, but it was pretty close according to Shamal. I tend to try not to think about the incident now, but one good thing did come out of it.

"I want to get stronger," I explained my resolve to Reborn. "So Dino won't worry about me and so I can protect my family. I want to learn how to fight." Reborn's eyes narrowed.

"You're a decent marksman."

"I know, but," I crossed my arms in frustration. Not frustration towards Reborn, but frustration towards myself. "I know I can handle myself in long-rage, and I'll still work on that to get better, but I need to focus on covering my biggest weakest; hand to hand combat." Reborn seemed thoughtful, then he spoke.

"I'm too busy teaching Dino to take you on too," he stated. I pouted. "And that's not my area of expertise." My pout became poutier. "But..." My eyes widened, hope filling them."

"I do have a colleague who might be willing to take you on." I smiled triumphantly and pumped my arm.

"Yeah! Who is it?" I bent down closer to him, almost bouncing. He answered with a question.

"Have you ever been to China, Cloud?"

* * *

><p>For once in my second life, I was actually studying for something (I didn't really consider all the medical stuff studying… more like a hobby). Well, perhaps a more accurate decision was studying like a maniacal mad womangirl. Right, I'm just 7. I've got to remember that. Back to the subject, I was learning Chinese. It was hard, of course. Learning an entire different language is always going to be hard. I knew I wouldn't be perfect by the time I actually leave but I'm guessing once I get there and am surrounded by a bunch of other people speaking it, I'll learn faster because I'll be forced to learn. That's how I learned Italian.

Reborn pretty much handled all the complicated stuff, like transportation and money. He just told me to have a basic understanding of Chinese before I leave... which is in about a week. Lovely. Meanwhile, while I was struggling with Mandarin, I had some loose ends to tie before I left.

"Hey, Romario," I called, peeking into Dino's office, "Can I talk to you for a second?" Dino looked up from his paper work.

"Was it it, Cloud?" He asked. I scrunched my nose.

"Was I talking to you?" He raised an eyebrow and I stuck my tongue out as Romario walked out of the door. I shut it behind him and faced Ivan, Bono and Romario. I motioned for them to follow me. They obeyed, a bit hesitant, not exactly knowing what I was up to. I was actually surprised they followed, knowing my track record. We arrived in the library and I sat down in a comfy chair.

"OK," I began coolly, "Now, I'm going to tell you guys something, and I don't want you to freak out." I locked eyes with each of them.

"What is it, princess?"

"Well," I began awkwardly, "I just thought that you guys should know..." I paused, "that I'm going to China for 2 years to train." They didn't respond. I blinked and gasped.

"_Gao yang jong duh goo yang, _I think I shocked them to death." Okay, so I did learn a little bit of Chinese, but only a few curses. Romario was the first to speak.

"You're going to China...?" I nodded. "Does Boss know about this?" I hesitated, then I shook my head.

"That's why I wanted to let you guys know," I explained, bringing my legs up so I was hugging my knees in the chair. "Knowing Dino, he'll freak out the moment he knows I'm gone, which is why he's not going to find out until I am on the plane and about to leave." I looked at them, to make sure they were still with me. They nodded, motioning for me to continue. "I need you guys to calm him down and keep him from going after me."

"But, Princess," Ivan started, "Isn't this something you need to talk over with Boss?" I rolled my eyes.

"He wouldn't let me go if I ask, so I'm just not asking," I said calmly. "This... this is something I need to do on my own. I need to get stronger for Dino, and for you guys." I smiled at them. "So I'm trusting you not to tell Dino this." Romario walked up to me, took my hand and kissed it.

"Whatever you say, Princess. We will respect your decision." Ivan and Bono bowed behind him, giving me their word. I sighed in relief, having gotten one more thing off my chest.

"Thanks, guys. I'm leaving in about a week. Reborn has already worked everything out and I just need to get Dino taken care of." Romario's eyes shot up.

"So soon?" I nodded.

"I want to do this so I'm prepared." I looked around at the confused expressions.

"Prepared for what?" I laughed and jumped out of the chair, making my way out of the room.

"For what's coming," I replied as I exited.

* * *

><p>It was moderately easy to sneak out of the house with my bags and get to the airport. Reborn covered my escape and Bono drove me. We had a touching goodbye, which made me feel a little guilty for not getting to say a formal goodbye to Dino (after all I won't see him for two years) but I knew if I tried that, he'd be suspicious. So I left without a good bye from my brother. Airport security was a breeze and luckily, thanks to Reborn, they did not find my two guns (I don't know how he does it, nor do I ask. You just don't question Reborn) and before I knew it I was sitting in first class reading my 'Mandarin for Morons' book.<p>

"Oh," I muttered pulling out my phone, "almost forgot." I turned it on only to see about 20 or so missed calls from Dino. About 10 seconds later it rang again. I answered.

"Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color?"

_"Cloud! Where the hell are you?" _He was seething. I winced at the sheer anger radiating off of his voice.

"On a plane to China. Ah, we're about to take off. Oh, and I won't be back for two years. Love you, Dino."

_"CHINA!? WAIT, CLOU-"_

I hung up just as the flight attendants came by to prepare for takeoff. I turned off my phone and went back to my book, trying to ignore the anticipation I felt. We took off soon enough.

And I was off to China.

* * *

><p>When Reborn sets something up, he sets it up perfectly. I got off the plane in Chengdu, the capital of the Sichuan province in Southwest. When I had picked up my bags I scanned the crowd and I was surprised to see a man holding a sign that said Cloud in Italian (I knew Reborn wasn't stupid enough to put Chiavarone. That's a well-known name, even to the mafia groups in China). I approached him. He smiled warmly at me and bowed.<p>

_"Hello, Gōngzh__ǔ__ . I am here to escort you to him." _It took me a few seconds to completely translate, but I got what he was saying. I nodded in reply.

_"Thank you."_ I muttered, still obviously not comfortable speaking a language I was forced to learn in less than two weeks. He began to walk out and I followed him to a small car. He motioned for me to hand him my bags. After he stowed them in the back seat, he opened the passenger door for me and I got in. He slipped into the driver's seat.

_"We are going to take a train out west and then get in another car and drive to his location."_ He said while driving. I nodded, getting the gist of it. Train out west, car drive. Done. Journey's end. And another journey begins.

When we arrived at the station, another man was waiting for us. As we got out, he drove off with the car. My escort seemed to ignore this, so I assumed it wasn't important. Reborn had also bought tickets before hand and I was handed a boarding ticket. Truthfully, I had never been on a train before. I originally thought it was going to be amazingly cool, but it turned out to be rather ordinary. It was just like a comfy bus ride on rails. I looked at my escort across from me, realizing I never got his name.

_"What...is your name?"_ I struggled with the words.

_"Sun Wu,"_ was his reply. _"I am part of the Wuya family. We have been in an alliance with the Chiavarone for a very long time." _I smiled when I translated it. So he was an ally of our family and is in the mafia. I snorted. Of course Reborn would have an allied family escort me.

_"It is good to have friends,"_ I said with confidence. Sun Wu smiled again (I've noticed that he does that a lot).

_"Yes it is,_ _Gōngzh__ǔ__."_

* * *

><p>Even though I couldn't understand everything, I had fun talking to Sun Wu on the train. He told me about his family and how he had a little sister as well (a pang of guilt ran through me as he said this). He said that I reminded him of her. I told him (or tried to tell him) about my family as well. He was helpful whenever I messed up. Sun Wu corrected me and continued on. Just talking to him for that hour made me feel like I had a better grip on Chinese. Soon, we boarded off the train where a colleague of Sun Wu was waiting for us with a car. We didn't talk much on the way there; I was much too preoccupied with the beautiful mountainous scenery. I only came back into reality when we went off on a small dirt road. We stopped in front of a trail of stone steps that, as I looked up, I couldn't see the end of them. Sun Wu turned around to address me.<p>

_"Forgive me, Gōngzh__ǔ__," _He said, _"But this as far as we were told to go." _I nodded and got out with my things.

_"I go up there?"_ I asked. He nodded. I paled, eyeing the stairs wearily. I turned to begin my journey.

_"Good luck,_ _Gōngzh__ǔ__." _I turned around to see Sun Wu smiling at me. I smiled back.

_"Thank you, Sun Wu." _They drove off and I turned to face the stairs, pouting. I sighed and began trudging up to the top.

* * *

><p>I was going to die. For real, this time. I've been climbing these stupid stairs for, like what? About two hours now? Yet, still no end. The only thing stopping me from giving up was my resolve. Also, that if I do go down the stairs, when I reached the bottom I would be disappointed in myself and climb back up, wasting more energy. There's also the fact that even if I don't feel guilty, if I get down and go back to Italy, Dino would murder me on the spot. Or worse, Reborn would for not going through with this. I shuddered.<p>

Right, stairs over death.

* * *

><p>About half an hour later, I was no longer grumbling. Over time I fell into a calm state and enjoyed the surreal scenery, I almost didn't notice the top of the stairs. Almost, being the key word.<p>

"_Shun-sheng duh gao-wahn, _I survived!" I ran up to the top, forgetting all my exhaustion. It was a quaint traditional house that seemed to fit right into the landscape. I ran up to the door, panting and knocked. No answer. I waited about five minutes. Then I got impatient. I pushed on the door, finding it unlocked.

_"Hello?" _I stuck my head in the door. Seeing no one, I walked in. The house was tiny and orderly on the inside matching it's quaint exterior. With much impatience, I made my way to the back of the house where I found another door, but opened. It lead to a rather large garden with a small water fall resting in the back. There was what looked to be a practice dummy, beat and worn from years of training. Narrowing my eyes, I spied a very small figure sitting in front of the water fall. I begin to approach him, but he rose and turned to face me.

"Hello, Cloud." He smiled gently. "My name is Fon."

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: The Night Has Come<strong>

I had almost forgotten about our lullaby. Almost. And what a strange word that is. Somewhere in between, somewhat gone, yet not yet escaped. A memory. A melody. A part of my past that maybe I was trying to forget. Perhaps I put maybe in that assumption to make myself feel less guilty for trying to suppress memories of her, for trying to forget fading memories of them. Perhaps it was guilt that pushed me to try to fully remember and fully grasp my lullaby hat she used to sing to me when I was young and we were alone in a room. Only then, only when we were alone did she even dare to hum the melody.

The unfamiliar words would wash over me and lull me into serenity, with meanings and sounds I could not grasp, but appreciated to the point where I didn't have to. The song, my lullaby, our lullaby, was embedded into my memory to the point where I recognized the notes. The words, however, evaded me. They were a distant mumble that I never understood. But, for now, with the resources I had, the notes would do me for now.

I grew frustrated as I searched the piano (something I that had been a piece of decoration more than anything in the manor, and brought back memories of Papa, which I didn't want or need at this time) for the exact keys, the exact notes of our lullaby. It was a challenge – no, a dire need to remember this. At times like these, when I actually allowed myself to remember these things, I knew I had to hold on to it before I grew stubborn again and let it go.

It took hours, which seemed like days, but I eventually found all the notes. I memorized it. I played it. I repeated and repeated until my hands hurt from playing, and my body hurt from sitting. I embedded these notes and these movements so that I would never forget them.

I fell asleep at that piano, that piece of decoration, that night, content, fulfilled, and for a short time happy that I had actually allowed myself to indulge in this memory of Mama, and I had actually allowed myself not to let it go.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I am such a nerd. I researched a bunch of martial arts style to find one (actually two) that fit Cloud and how she wants to fight. I also did my best to find information on China and where Fon is living (at least where Fon in living in my story. I just based it off the picture of him as an adult, and the background of that picture). Sorry if the information isn't accurate (and feel free to tell me if it isn't and correct me, so I can go back and correct it). I haven't been to China, so I'm kinda writing blind (but I really want to go to China).****Oh, and should I change the rating to T? There is some cussing now (and there's going to be some Chinese cussing from Firefly. Golly, I love that show). I dunno, let me know what you think.****This is kinda a short chapter from what I've been posting. The next chapter (or two maybe perhaps) will be Cloud in China training with Fon. Just a warning, it's going to be explaining a lot of stuff so it might seem boring at times (unless you like learning about this stuff like me).****As always, THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS, PEEPS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit:**

**I didn't have to do much with this chapter, since it was so sort, but I did add that little story at the end, since I wanted to put that somewhere, and this chapter was sort enough that i could do it. **


	7. Ginga Ginga

**Chapter 7: Ginga, Ginga**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR. 'Nuff said.**

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><p><strong>"The Phoenix must burn to emerge."<strong>

**-Janet Fitch (White Oleander)**

* * *

><p>Fon was nice. His workouts weren't. We started with stamina training, and Fon thought that a good way to do this was running up and down the stairs. Multiple times. Meanwhile, while I was dying, Fon was calmly sitting on my head.<p>

Going on a tangent here, what's up with Acrobaleno just casually sitting on people's heads? Do they hold onto to anything or do they have insane baby balance powers? I'm just wondering how Fon can calmly sit on my head while I'm running. Personally, I wouldn't think it would be very comfy ride.

"We're almost done," Fon said, pulling me off my tangent. My speed improved as we neared the top. When I reached my destination, I collapsed, breathing heavily. Fon jumped off before I hit the ground. I rolled over onto my back, staring up at the sky. Fon walked over to my side. He poked my stomach, frowned, and looked at me.

"You need to lose some weight." I stared at him.

"I'm _go tsao de _fluffy, dammit!" He chuckled. I scoffed (well, it came out as a weez).

"I thought you were the nice one?!" He smiled.

"You thought wrong." I shuddered. I was starting to not trust that calm smile of his.

* * *

><p>"Can you do a cart wheel, Cloud?" I stared at the upside down image of my master.<p>

"I think so..." I trailed off, returning my focus to keeping my balance and not fall over on my face. "Why?" He shrugged, then jumped up to balance on my feet, not helping me whatsoever. I grimaced as I swayed momentarily, then regained my once lost posture.

"It will help you with the style you are going to learn." He paused. "You can stop now." Luckily for him, Fon jumped off before I gracefully (ungracefully) fell to the ground, retiring form my hand stand. I pushed myself up to a sitting position.

"So," I started, "what style of kick-ass martial arts am I going to learn, oh master of mine?" He frowned at my description, but continued.

"It's a Brazillian martial arts called the Capoeira. It uses quick and complex moves, using mainly power, speed, and leverage for a wide variety of kicks, spins, and highly mobile techniques." I frowned.

"Sounds like a lot of work..." he ignored me and continued.

"It demonstrates many sweeps and low moves for self-defense, but it also incorporates higher moves such as cartwheels and flips." I paled, remembering the time I told Dino I could indeed do a flip and ended up almost breaking my neck... and my back... along with other various body parts. Over all it was not a good experience.

"There are many techniques in the Capoeira like the ginga, which is the starting point for the leverage. I will teach you the traditional style, but after you have learned it, I know you will add your own style and fight your way." I raised an eyebrow.

"My way?" He nodded.

"Already, even with your everyday movements, I can tell a little bit about your natural fighting style. You tend to avoid more than attack, and have a fluid, almost liquid like movement where you adapt to whatever comes after you. Knowing this, I have a feeling that you will be using the Capoeira movement you have learned to evade. Fortunately, this will work perfectly." I stared at him, deep in thought.

"So, basically, my fighting style is _nooooope_." He sighed, then gave a soft smile, having already gotten used to my humor.

"Basically. Which is why, after the Capoeria, I will teach you a little Judo and joint locks. Therefore, when you do strike, there will be more damage. How much do you know about pressure points and analogy?"

"I read all the medical books I could get my hands on," I shrugged. He stared at me in mild shock). I waved him off. "I get really bored and had nothing else to read. I can also tell you every detail of all the Star Wars movies." I smiled. He sighed, and continued, ignoring my geeky comment. I sniffed at this, mad that I was ignored once again.

"But before we start anything, we have to get you in shape."

"I've already lost a lot of flubber," I whined, poking my stomach. It was true. Most of my kiddie fat was gone, making me slimmer already. Although, at the moment I had yet to build up any muscle, therefore I resembled a walking stick more than anything. Fon simply smiled at me.

"We have a long ways to go, my dear pupil."

* * *

><p>I've always thought that the typical anime hot springs scene was cliché. Of course, that was before I actually visited a hot spring. And let me point out, after conditioning and learning martial arts from one of the best in the world, soaking terribly sore muscles in hot water is the best feeling ever. Fon was the best master ever, giving me a day off and all... even if he did almost train me to death multiple times. At least he was nice about it, unlike other home tutors I know.<p>

Although, it was a little difficult because of our size differences. Maybe that's why Ipin is so good at such a young age. It must be easier for Fon to teach someone his size. Which reminds me, I wonder when Ipin starts training with Fon. I smiled. I kind of, sorta wanted me and Ipin to be tight. Like, sisters tight. I've always wondered what it was like to have a little sister, and who would make a better sweet little sister than Ipin? I blinked, returning from my thoughts into reality.

Other women sat around me, talking quietly among themselves. Without Fon's training, I probably wouldn't have come. I mean, the fact that I would have to strip in front of others kind of made me feel nervous. But, now I was more confident with my body (not that I wasn't confident before. Another word would be cocky. But confident sounds nicer). I was actually pleased that I was more toned now (although still small) and looked way more athletic than I used to almost a year ago. And yet, I was not super-mega-foxy-awesome-hot. Yet. You see, this is my life long goal. I mean, Dino's pretty good looking, so it runs in the family. That, along with an awesome rocking athletic body that will come when I'm done with training, I'm pretty positive that I will reach my goal.

For now, however, I was still an only slightly toned, scrawny eight year old. I huffed. Looking around again, I noticed that there was only one other lone women in the hot springs, standing up with her back towards me. My eyes widened when I saw the heart shaped tattoo on her lower back and the scorpion tattoo on her arm.

"Bianchi?" I blinked, realized I said that out loud and clapped my hand over my mouth. She whipped around, eyes narrowed. She sauntered over to me when she spotted me. I could almost hear her theme music playing. She casually sat beside me, eyeing the over women to make sure they didn't notice my outburst. I smiled up at her nervously.

"Who are you?" I decided that it was best not to lie to her.

"Cloud Chiavarone, sister of the boss of the Chiavarone Family boss."

"How do you know me?" this time I lied, using the first thing that popped into my head.

"Reborn told me about you." It was almost scary how fast her mood changed.

"Reborn?!" She grabbed my shoulders, a look of pure joy on her face. "You know where Reborn is?" I nodded awkwardly, not really knowing how to respond to her mood swings. When she continued to stare at me hopefully I realized she was waiting for details.

"He's training my brother to be the 10th generation Chiavarone Boss." Bianchi's features darkened.

"How dare he take," her voice turned light and happy, "my dear Reborn away," dark again, "I'll just have to take care of that." Her moods changed yet again and she smiled at me.

"Thank you for this information, Cloud." She patted my head and got out of the water, sauntering away. I blinked and cocked my head.

"I think I just unleashed Bianchi on my brother," I whispered to myself, contemplating it. I shrugged. "He can handle himself."

"... I think."

* * *

><p>"So..." I began while stirring our dinner for that night. Fon was sitting calmly at the table ('cause he's such a chill dude) sipping tea and I was cooking dinner at the stove, throwing up a few pieces to Lichi, who was sitting on top of my head, every now and then.<p>

"Do you have any family in Japan?" Fon looked up at me quizzically.

"Why Japan?" I froze. I was hoping to find out if Hibari was really related to Fon, and if so, how he was related to my master. Although I had to accomplish this without letting Fon know that I knew Hibari, because quite frankly I wouldn't have a way of knowing him. Darn my knowledge of the future. This is going to be a bitch later too, I just know it.

"You look Japanese," I had to scramble for that one. His eyebrows collided.

"I'm Chinese." I shrugged.

"Just wondering in case I ever go over there and need connections..." or feel the need to stalk a certain skylark. He seemed to except that.

"Yes." I looked back at him.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, I have relatives in Japan." I gazed at him hopefully. He turned back to his tea. I stared at him more, not giving up.

"The dinner is burning," he noted, without even looking up.

"_Liou coe shway duh biao-tze huh hoe-tze duh ur-tze!_" Fon frowned.

"Language, Cloud."

"Sorry."

* * *

><p>I was freaking out. You see, when training in the back yard enclosure (what had been my training ground for the past year I had been in China) I had always faced off against the old and word practice dummy. His name was Pablo, a name given to him after I had cleverly named him. My dilemma was that I had killed Pablo. I was now officially a Pablo murderer. Now I wasn't freaking out for Pablo's sake. I knew that Fon had had this dummy for years and years. Probably before he was turned into a child. As far as I knew, it was the only one he had.<p>

You'd think after all that time that I wouldn't have been surprised when it snapped under that weight of my Aú Batido. Yet, it was because of all that time that I was surprised and didn't think I could break it. I mean, if it can withstand Fon's moves all this time, what good would mine do? So, as I said, after I killed Pablo I freaked out. That was the state Fon found me in.

"I'm so, so sorry," I said awkwardly, rubbing the back of my head, "I know you've had it a while and stuff. I realy didn't mean to kill it..." Now, I didn't expect Fon to blow up on me. He was a chill dude, after all, but I didn't expect him to laugh. I stared at him.

"You shouldn't be sorry that you've broken it, Cloud," he chided gently, "You should be proud that you had the strength to do it. I'm proud of you, my pupil. You've come a long way." he smiled up at me, a smile that has become a comfort to me now. After all this time, Fon was somewhat of a fatherly figure to me. "But," he continued, "You still have a long way to go." I nodded.

"I know."

And I smiled back.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**(Forgot to mention this last chapter) Congrats to Sora Rai for guessing that Fon was going to be Cloud's tutor way back when!**

**Dudes, I absolutely LOVE the Capoeira. Seriously, go look up videos, it's amazing. It makes me want to learn it. If anyone out there knows it, send me a message or a review to tell me more about it and point out any mistakes I have made.**

**Ok, so some people asked me if Cloud will meet Ipin.**

**Answer:**

**Eventually, but not until Cloud is ten or so. Ipin is 5 when she meets Tsuna and co. and since Cloud is the same age as them there is an 8 year difference. So, at the present, since Cloud is 8 at the moment, Ipin has either just been born or is about to be born. I'm guessing that Ipin came to Fon when she was 1 (later is the year) or 2. Therefore, Cloud will meet Ipin when she is ten.**

**I'm planning to have a sister relationship with them, so Cloud is going to be like Ipin's role model. Don't know how good of a role model she'll be, but a role model none the less.**

**I also plan on putting more Bel and Cloud get-togethers in here. Someone mentioned BelXCloud in a reveiw, and I'm sorry to squash any shippers, but I do not plan on putting them together. They're like best bud bro friends. In truth I already have a pretty good almost positive idea on who Cloud will end up with. I already have a little story planned where Cloud is about to get married and Bel is pissed about it, since she was the only princess he knows, so Cloud goes off trying to set different princesses up with Bel. Fun stuff. Over all, I just love them together since Bel + Cloud = utter chaos.**

**I had MAJOR writers block writing this, so sorry for the wait. I'm mostly focusing on this story at the moment out of all my fics. I've also been busy stage managing a Christmas show (I'm just about to be Christmased out. So probably no Christmas chapter... maybe.).**

**Anywho (wow, long author's note) AS ALWAYS THANKS TO ALL THE LOVELIES THAT REVEIWED AND AS ALSO REMEMBER TO REVEIW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!**

**-Klu**

**Note: Thanks to whoever added this to the communities too!**

**Edit: Didn't really change much this chapter besides spelling and grammar things and such. Luckily, I'm getting to the point where I don't have to fix as much. Thanks god. **


	8. For Them

**Chapter 8: For Them**

**Cloud****: 8**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR. Obviously. **

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><p><strong>"You traveled here today in search of knowledge – to hone your craft and acquire new skills – and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people."<strong>

**-Shannon McCormick (Professor Ozpin: RWBY)**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Sashasrara: Chakra of Pure Conciousness<span>**

"Just relax, Cloud." I sighed and straightened my posture. I took a deep breath in and tried to clear my mind.

"This isn't working." I finalized after about 30 seconds. I opened my eyes to find Fon staring at me.

"You aren't trying hard enough," Fon gently chided, "Clear your mind."

"I think that's the part where I'm having trouble," I admitted, "There's just too many things going on in there." I shrugged. Fon looked at me, concerned.

"What's troubling you, Cloud?" I hesitated.

"I just... feel like I have a lot on my shoulders." I almost laughed at myself. I know I shouldn't be complaining, since I did put all this pressure on myself, but I've changed since I first came into this world. I have a resolve and I'm going to see it through. Meanwhile, while I was thinking to myself, my master was gazing at me thoughtfully.

"Cloud," he started, "You know it's not good to keep things bottled up inside. Do you want to talk about it?" I smiled at him.

"No, not now. Now isn't the right time," I explained, bringing my knees up to hug them. "Besides," I chuckled, "You wouldn't believe my entire story any way." Then again, would anybody? Would anybody take me seriously if I told them I accidentally chose to be reborn into a world that was fictional in my own world, then nobody would believe me... except for _him_. And when I thought more about it, _him_ too (although I like the first option much better). I smiled, returning to the meditation lesson in front of the water fall.

"You know, Fon, even though we didn't talk about, I feel much better now. I think I can give this meditation thing another try." He smiled up at me and returned to his own meditation.

I took a deep breath once again. I thought of the future ahead and possibly the only two people who would believe my story.

I smiled. I was finally somewhat at peace.

**Located at the very top of the head,**** Sashasrara is the ckakra of pure consciousness. It involves wisdom and the death of the body and deal with meditation, mental action with universal consciousness, unity, and emotional action with "beingness". Emotional issues that deal with this chakra are inner and outer beauty, our connection to spirituality and pure bliss.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Ajna: Third Eye Chakra<span>**

"Well, this was a wonderful idea."

So, yeah... I'm lost. You see, my dear lovely master decided that we should take an endurance hike. That I could do (by this point, I was OK with running and exercise). Yet, when Fon suggested we take a break, of course, things went wrong. Long story short, I decided to take a nap on this break and woke up to find myself alone and not knowing how to get back.

"Yep, a wonderful idea." I waited for a while. Then, common sense struck me. The little _bun tyen-shung duh ee-dway-ro _is testing me. I sighed and trusted my intuition. I looked around me, knowing that if we came up, that I was going down.

"And off I go," I muttered to no one particular. About an hour later, I ran into trouble in the form of a giant panda bear. Now, I bet most of you think that they're cute and cuddly. Well, they may be cute, but they are still wild animals. Therefore, dangerous and I'm not about to mess with a bear that has 'giant' in its name.

I froze as I walked into the clearing. So did the panda that _was_ casually eating bamboo. I say was because it was staring at me now. I calmed myself before I could start panicking. That definitely won't help me. I slowly started to back away, to put distance between us. It reacted when I moved. The bear rose and began padding over to me, curiosity shining in its eyes. Surprisingly, I was extremely calm. Something washed over me, and I spoke, power in my voice.

"Stop. I'm not going to hurt you." And it did stop. It stared at me for a while, for what seemed like forever actually, and then it turned away from me and lumbered off to the right. I only allowed myself to move when I was almost positive it was gone. I thought back over the situation. "I just convinced a panda to go away," I mused. I shrugged. "Hey, I mean if it works..." and continued my journey. Although, I was curious as to what possessed me to start talking to the animal, but it just felt right. I shook my head, dismissing the thoughts. Well, it's past me now.

I grew excited when I actually saw the paths. That excitement sputtered out when I remembered that there were _paths. _And multiple Forks in those paths_._ I made a popping sound with my lips.

"Left," I decided, trusting my judgment, "I'll go left first." The next fork I went left again. Third fork right. Left, right, right, left... and then I found Fon. He smiled at me. I scowled at him.

"So, you just left your innocent, lovely student in the middle of a forest in a foreign country?"

"I was testing your intuition and trust in yourself," was his response. "But I'm proud of you for memorizing which paths we took." I stared at him.

"You know that was just guessing right? It's pure luck that I ended up here."

He sighed.

**Ajna is located at the forehead, between the eyes (also called brow chakra) and its key issues involve balancing the higher and lower selves and trusting inner guidance. It is the access of intuition and it emotionally and mentally deals with visual consciousness, clarity on an intuitive level, imagination, wisdom and the ability to think and make decisions.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Vishuddha: Throat Chakra<span>**

I blinked.

"Who are you?" I asked, looking up at her. It was a strange image. The girl before me was draped on a mushroom in a jinn looking get up and smoking a hookah. She flipped her orange hair back and fixed her brown eyes on me.

"A better question would be," she put the hookah nozzle to her mouth before she finished, "Who are you?" She blew smoke into my face, activating a coughing fit from me. I closed my eyes and waved the smoke away, only to open my eyes to a new scene. The girl was now sitting at the end of a long table covered in tea pots along with other tea time items. If I hadn't been so confused, I would have laughed at the outrageously large top hat she wore.

"That's what I asked," I clarified, cocking my head. She laughed and took a sip of tea. I decided I didn't like this girl. A thoughtful look crossed her face.

"Maybe I misled you. An even better question would be: Who am I?" I stood up, frustrated with the fact that I wasn't given a straight answer.

"Look, I don't know who you are, but I don't really care. I'm pissed right now and you better give me some _go tsao de _answers right now-" she interrupted me.

"Watch your step." She pointed downwards. At that moment I started falling. I closed my eyes and screamed. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt when I hit the ground. That's when I finally understood what was happening.

"Okay," I stood up, laughing," I get it now. This is all just a dream."

"Is it really?" I turned around to face the mirror in front of me, but instead of my own reflection, it was the girl again.

"You," I pointed at her, "are not real. This is all just some crazy dream, and I should wake up any minute now." I waited. "Any minute." She laughed at me again, doubling over this time. I sighed.

"Who are you?" I asked her again, slow and deliberate. She stopped laughing and stood up straight, facing me with a blank expression.

"You," She answered.

"Me?" She smiled.

"Correct." I cocked my head.

"Huh?" She rested her hand on her forehead and shook her head, clicking her tongue.

"It's a little pathetic that you can't even recognize yourself." I squinted my eyes, scrutinizing her face. I gasped when I recognized it. Of course, I should have recognized it. It was the same freckled, pimple covered face that I woke up with every morning for the past 15 years. Well, the past fifteen years before I... turned into Cloud. She laughed at me again.

"Turned into Cloud?!" she barked, "You didn't turn into anyone! You're still the same. You can't change anything," she sneered. I shook my head numbly.

"You're wrong, I am Cloud."

"'Cloud' doesn't exist! She shouldn't have existed in the first place. But you just had to go and screw up everything didn't you? How selfish. Leaving your family on a whim."

"The Chiavarone is my family! Dino is my family!" The girl, me, myself, whatever you wanted to call her, scoffed and shook her head.

"Do you even remember their names?"

"Of course I do!" I rebuked, "I had-have a brother named..." I drew a blank, "Named..." She laughed again; a cold, harsh sound.

"It's not like you're doing any good here anyway," she chuckled, "You couldn't save _'your'_ parents; your father didn't even love you, and you let your mother, who was just using you to make herself feel better, just die right in front of you without lifting a finger. You couldn't even save yourself." She smirked. "You know, maybe you should have died that time; actually dying, not just _cheating_." I continued to shake my head in denial and slowly sank to my knees.

"I will help. I will save-"

"You _will_? It's too late for _will_! How about did? Did you save them? You're nothing!"

"I AM CLOUD!"

"You're Hannah!" she yelled back at me, causing me to wince. She continued, "You're the useless, coward of a girl who would shut herself up and lock herself away, dreaming of being the hero she would never be. And now, when you actually have a chance to be that hero," she bent down to my level and whispered in my ear, "You still can't do it." She retreated back to the mirror. "So, I'll ask again. Who are you?"

I almost answered with 'Hannah', but at that moment, something snapped in me.

Who was _she_ to tell me what I was and wasn't. She was me, I answered logically. She _was _me. Though, at this moment, right now, I _am_ me. I _am_ Cloud. Maybe the old me couldn't be a hero, couldn't save anyone, but I am not the same person. I am Cloud, and I'm pretty sure that Cloud will try her hardest to be a hero even if it doesn't work out. I glared at the reflection.

"I am Cloud." She, Hannah, looked at me in confusion.

"Didn't you just hear me? You ar-" I rose and cut her off.

"You may be the old me, but you cannot tell the new me what I can and cannot do. If I want to be a hero, that's up to _me_, the me I am _now_."

The mirror broke. But before everything completely shattered I thought I hear a scream and saw a look of utter destruction and pain on Hannah's face. On my old face.

I woke up, breathing heavily.

I cried.

**This chakra relates to communication, self-expression of feelings and the truth. Emotionally, it governs independence and mentally governs fluent thought. Spiritually, it governs a sense of security and it is an important role in dream yoga; the art of lucid dreaming.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Anahata: Heart Chakra<span>**

**_Dear Hubby,_**

_Long time no see, right? Hope you're doing well and I hope the Varia is recovering after what happened (Yes, I know about that, don't freak out. You know I know all kinds of shit). Anyway, writing to you from China. I'm in year two of my epic training and am actually about to go back home in a couple months. Although I could very well die when I get back because I kind of, sort of didn't tell Dino I was going in the first place. So, yeah, that's about all that's going on with me. And just to let you know, WE ARE HANGING OUT WHEN WE GET BACK. You're basically the closest friend I have and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one that can stand being around you for more than 5 minutes. Therefore, we are stuck with each other._

_Lots of Love and eternal friendship forever,_

_Cloud_

**_Dear Lussaria,_**

_After writing to Bel, I realized that once you find out that he got a letter from me, you would want one too. Also that if I did not write you one, I would never hear the end of it. So, here's a rundown on what's happening in my life:_

_I went to China to train_

_Dino may or may not kill me_

_I have a very sad and uneventful life. I hope you're satisfied._

_Love,_

_Cloud_

**_Dear Romario,_**

_Hope you aren't too busy cleaning up the mess I left behind (namely: Dino). I just want to let you know that I really love all you guys. You dudes do so much for me and I just want you to know that you're appreciated. Thanks for stopping Dino from flying to China to com and drag me back (We all know he would have done that if someone wouldn't of stopped him). I'll be returning in couple months from now, and I will notify you when I have more details._

_Lots of Love and thankfulness,_

_Cloud_

**_Dear Ivan and Bono,_**

_Hey, dudes. Just to let my personal bodyguards know, I have not been killed yet. Okay, rethinking writing that yet... nah, it's fine, you guys know I'm not dead at the moment. Besides I'm always just held for ransom instead of them killing me. Moving on, MISS YOU BUNCHES. Seriously, I am nothing without my partners in crime. Well, I mostly did the crime, but you guys never stopped me, therefore making you accomplices. I will be returning soon (like in a couple months), so expect my usual shenanigans to return upon my arrival._

_Love, love, everywhere,_

_Cloud_

**_Dear Reborn,_**

_Yeah, remember when you said Fon was nice?_

_YOU WERE WRONG._

_-Cloud_

Truthfully, I hesitated before I began writing the last letter. Fon glanced up at me from across the table.

"What's wrong, Cloud?"

"I... don't want to face him yet," I mumbled grudgingly. Fon smiled reassuringly at me.

"You're going to have to face him sometime, Cloud. And it's only just a letter." I nodded seeing logic in his words.

"Oh, screw it, I'm just going to do it." Fon frowned at my choice of words.

**_Dear Dino,_**

_First off, I would like to say: PLEASE DO NOT MURDER ME WHEN I GET BACK. I value my life, thank you very much. Second, I am sorry. Really, I am. I know I shouldn't have just left without telling you anything, but, really, I had no choice. The cold hard truth is, if you knew beforehand, you would have stopped me. No talking, no negotiating, you would have just stopped me and kept me locked away. Don't deny it because you know it's true._

_Dino, you are not my parent. You are not Mama. You are definitely not Papa, and don't you dare think for a second you are anything like that man. So stop acting like you are. You're my brother. Yes, that means you can protect me, but that does not mean you can stop me from what I need to do. And I needed to do this. It was obvious that I needed to get stronger. For my family, for my friends, for you. But you need to understand that I'm not just some innocent little girl that can easily get hurt. I can take care of myself. Of course, this doesn't mean you have to back off completely. You can still care about me, Bro._

_Now, I can confidently say I am stronger (Thanks to Fon). Not incredibly strong, but we will not have a repeat of what happened last time at least. But, Dino, thank you for being there for me, whenever I needed you. Thanks for being a wonderful brother._

_And just to let you know. I _know_ you are going to make a wonderful boss. Trust me._

_Your adorable, lovable, sister who will be returning to you soon so please don't kill me and remember how much you love me,_

_Cloud_

**_Dear Mama,_**

_I still miss you, and I hope that I always will. I'm becoming stronger. For you, for Romario, for Ivan, for Bono, for Bel, for Squalo, for Dino, for all those who I love and are important to me. I want to become strong for my family, not for me. Never for me. Because I don't deserve to become stronger for myself._

_I hope it isn't a lie when I promise that I'll always remember our secret, our lullaby, our precious memories. I hope it isn't a lie when I say I still love you and that I always will. I know it isn't a lie when I say that I miss you._

_Fon is the father figure that Papa would never be to me. Dino is the brother that I don't deserve for forgetting the first. Squalo's the strange brother figure that I didn't expect to have, and maybe Bel's the friend that I actually deserve. You are the mother that I never understood, but still accepted the love you gave me that may have been just for your own gain. I miss you. I love you, at least for now._

_Love,_

_Cloud _

**Key issues of Anahata involve complex emotions, compassion, tenderness, unconditional love, equilibrium rejection and well-being. It physically governs circulation, emotionally governs love for self and others, mentally governs passion and spiritually governs devotion.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Manipura: Solar Plexus Chakra<span>**

I fell to the ground, panting with exhaustion.

_"Can you continue, Gōngzh__ǔ__?" _Sun Wu glanced at me warily. I nodded, not bothering to waste my breath. Fon frowned from the sidelines.

_"You shouldn't push yourself, Cloud. You should stop for today." _I shakily pushed myself to my feet and shook my head.

_"I'm not good enough... I have to become stronger for them,"_ I panted, _"I'm not good enough yet."_ I readied myself and nodded towards Sun Wu. He frowned, but still attacked me. I bridged back to dodge his kick and cartwheeled to safety from his kick, returning my own kick. Unfortunately that was blocked by another kick courtesy of Sun Wu. My muscles strained on impact and I faltered, which ended the fight with me on the ground, again. I grimaced as I attempted to push myself up once more.

"One more time," I wheezed, almost desperate. Fon looked at me sadly and then turned towards Sun Wu.

_"She's pushing herself too hard. Knock her out." _My eyes widened.

"Wait, I'm not done ye-" ignoring my pleas, Sun Wu was behind me in a flash and hit the back of neck. I went out like a light.

When I woke up, hours later, nothing had changed. I looked down at my open palms and clenched them into fists.

I was still weak.

**The location of this chakra is the upper abdomen in the stomach are. Emotional issues are self-worth, self-confidence and self-esteem. Key issues are personal power, fear, anxiety, opinion formation, introversion and transition from simple or base emotions to complex. It governs digestion physically, personal power mentally, expansiveness emotionally, and all matters of growth spiritually.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Swadhisthana: Sacral Chakra<span>**

I stared at Fon.

He stared back.

"You seriously haven't watched Mulan?" He kept his blank face.

"I don't see how this is importa-"

"Not important? Mulan is the most kick-as-"

"Language Cloud."

"Is the _rutting_ best Disney movie ever!" Fon sighed.

"Just because you curse in Chinese, does not make it acceptable." I scoffed.

"You're getting off subject!" I scolded, "We are _sooo_ watching Mulan." And an hour later, we were.

"How did you even get this movie in under an hour? It just came out this year," Fon questioned beside me, holding a bowl of popcorn that was almost too big for him. I smiled.

"I have my ways. Now, shush, it's starting!" And so we began watching the movie.

"You know that is punishable by death..." Fon commented as Mulan was in the middle of her cross dressing sequence.

"This is basically a summary of my two years in China," I noted during _"I'll Make a Man Out of You"_. Fon blinked, and then agreed with me.

_"~A girl worth fighting fo-_" Fon shoved popcorn in my mouth, effectively choking me. Then, because I was distracting him with my choking noises, he ushered me out of the room. If I had not been choking, I would have smirked in satisfaction. I rejoined him later, at the end of the movie. I stared at him, until he finally noticed my gaze.

"..."

"...well?" I asked enthusiastically. He smiled at me.

"You were right, Cloud, it was a good movie." My grin widened.

"Would you go as far to say that is was a kick-ass movie?" He sighed, and then nodded.

"Yes, Cloud, it was indeed a 'kick-ass' movie." I fist pumped in victory. I nearly bounced out of the room.

"Thanks, Master. It was fun spending time with you!" Fon delivered his signature smile back.

"I had fun as well, Cloud."

**Swadhisthana deals with relationships, violence, addictions, basic emotional need, pleasure, sense of abundance, well-being and sexuality. Physically, it governs reproduction, spiritually governs enthusiasm, mentally governs creativity, and emotionally governs joy. It is located in the lower abdomen.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Muladhara: Root Chakra<span>**

As soon as the arrow embedded itself in the tree behind me, I bolted, deeming the place as unsafe now. I ducked just in time as a fist came flying towards me, and swinging around, I delivered a kick and cart wheeled away from my second opponent's attack. Keeping my ginga going, I smoothly dodged her attacks until I saw an opening in her stomach, and sent my body weight into my kick, effectively taking her out. I wasted no time moving on, knowing more were behind them. I nimbly scampered up into the nearest tree once I thought I had come into a safer area. I leaned on the tree trunk, sitting on my branch, allowing myself to catch my breath.

I was in the middle of what Fon labeled, 'my final test'. In other words, a survival test. Well, in a way. I at least had to survive until I found Lichi, who was proving hard as _guay _to find. Meanwhile, while I'm looking for the small mammal, the Wuya family was hunting me, with full killing intent. And yet, with all this going on, I remained calm under pressure. Fon says it's a great skill I have, I say it's just me keeping my self completely freaking out on the inside. I froze, when I heard the slightest sound.

And then Lichi almost scared the daylights out of me, and not to mention, almost made me fall out of the tree. I stared at Lichi. He blinked at me. I pounced, he pounced away, and in the end I was tackled by a Wuya member before I could grab the little twerp. We hit the ground hard, but luckily I had enough sense when we were in the air to turn to where the poor guy that was dumb enough to tackle me took most of the blow. I kneed him in the stomach just to make sure he was done and got up, another arrow barely missing me. I scowled. That archer was annoying. Of course, if I had my guns, I could take care of that, but Fon put a 'no weapons, only martial arts for Cloud' rule. So I continued to run.

This went on for about two more hours. I had taken down about 40 Wuyas and had seen Lichi about 3 times. The little twerp kept leaping away from me when I tried to get near him. I ran into a clearing only to stop dead in my tracks. Sun Wu was there, waiting for me.

_Gos se. _He was a master martial artists and I had not won a single one of our spares. He smiled at me. I smiled at him, waved, and quickly and promptly ran away. I didn't look to see if he followed me, I simply focused on running. After I secured a proper resting spot, and made sure I was not followed, I opened my bag and produced an apple. I was about to take a bite when I saw Lichi again. He was staring at the apple.

I almost face palmed. Of course Lichi would be hungry. He's been out here as long as me and it's not like there's an abundance of food in this forest that he likes. Not to mention, he favored apples (and any junk food, but Fon doesn't know that). I smiled widely at the small monkey. I held out the apple.

"You want this?" I cooed. He eyed me suspiciously, and then hesitantly nodded. He slowly made his way towards the apple, and as he did this, I drew the apple nearer to me until the monkey was right in front of me. I slowly snake my head towards him, making sure I didn't startle him. The calmness I had come to grow used to was present throughout this whole encounter. Soon, I was walking back, cradling the small apple nibbling mammal in my arms; secure enough that he would be able to jump out easily, but loose enough not to suffocate him. Fon and Sun Wu met me half way.

Fon smiled; a smile that has become much too familiar after all this time.

"Good job, Cloud," he congratulated me, "After 2 years of training, you are ready." Sun Wu beamed at me besides my master. "Of course," Fon continued, "You are not a master yet, so I expect you to be back a couple months a year for training." I nodding agreeing with him fully and swelling with pride and anticipation.

After two years in China, I was going home.

**At the base of the spine is the location of the root chakra which is related to instinct, security, survival and basic human potentiality. It governs sensuality physically, a sense of security spiritually, and has a relation to the sense of smell. This chakra represents our foundation and feeling of being grounded.**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT EVERYWHERE. AND ANGST. LOTS OF ANGST AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.**

**Ok, so this concludes the 2 years of training. Cloud will visit Fon every summer however (when she's not busy with other things) so she can continue her training, because, of course, she's not a master yet. Still, she has learned the basics of Capoeria and some Judo, so she is able to hold her own.**

**So, next chapter she goes back to Italy to face her brother who most likely wants to murderer her, bring her back to life, and then lock her away forever so she never gets away again. Aw, aren't over protective hen brothers great?**

**THANKS FOR ALL THE FAVORITES, FOLLOWS AND REVIEWS, DOLLS! AS ALWAYS, REVIEWS ARE LOVE.**

**-Klu**

**Edit: I was going to take out the Mulan thing and replace it, but I realized that I needed something with that kind of mood, since most of this chapter is AAANGST. So, again, didn't change anything major. I'm also taking out old review responses. **


	9. Homecoming

**Chapter 9: Homecoming.**

**Cloud****: 9**

**Dino: 17**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR. Duh.**

* * *

><p><strong>"I'm arguably forgiving."<strong>

**-Daniel Hardcastle**

* * *

><p><em>"Goodbye, Sun Wu. It was nice meeting you,"<em> I said, giving him a slight bow, _"I hope we meet again."_ He smiled back at me.

_"As do I, Gōngzh__ǔ__."_

_"Well, I'm off."_

_"..."_

_"..."_

_"...You're not moving, Gōngzh__ǔ__."_ I sighed, standing in front of the boarding gate. Sun Wu smiled gently at me.

And then promptly and literally kicked me in the gate.

_"Goodbye, Gōngzh__ǔ__. And don't be too afraid of your brother. I'm sure he loves you too much to kill you." _Rubbing my poorly mistreated stomach, I stuck my tongue out at him. He laughed and we parted ways. I arrived on the plane and plopped down into my seat, suddenly tired. I put my seat belt on and situated myself in a more comfortable position, preparing for a nap.

I might as well rest now. I have a feeling that today is going to be a _long_ day.

* * *

><p>I nearly tackled Ivan when I saw him. "Ivan!" I ran up to him and he met me in a hug, lifting me and spinning me around.<p>

"Princess! It's wonderful to see you after so long!" He chuckled. He put me down and tilted his head.

"Are you lighter?"

"Is that a fat joke?" He laughed, as if he hadn't just said I used to be heavy. Forgetting his insult, we made our way to the car, arms linked. We chattered aimlessly, but happily, filling each other in on what happened in my absence.

"So..." I began when we were in the car, driving away from the airport, "Just how bad was his reaction." Ivan chuckled nervously, knowing exactly who I was talking about.

"Well, it took about five or six of us to hold him back before Reborn could calm him down." I winced.

"That bad, huh?" He nodded. "So, on a scale of 1 to 10 of how horrible my punishment will be, with 1 being something I can make someone else do and ten being 'it would be smart to leave the country again', what would your rating be?" He thought about it.

"6."

_"G__ǒ__up__ì__."_

* * *

><p>Surprisingly, by the time we got back to the mansion, my home that I had missed for two years, I was no longer nervous. I only had one thing on my mind. The instant I got out of the car, the front doors opened revealing Dino. Smiling, I ran up the stairs...<p>

Only to run right past Dino and on into the house yelling, "Junk food!"

Dino, who had his arms outstretched expecting a hug, froze. His eye twitched. Romario sighed from his side.

"Yep, she's back." It was then that Dino recovered.

"GODDAMMIT CLOUD!"

* * *

><p>Later, they found me in my kitchen stuffing my face with Lucky Charms. I paled as Dino stormed in, followed by Romario, Bono and Reborn. I gave a pleading look at Reborn. He only smirked as Dino came closer to me and forcibly grabbed my shoulders as I shrunk back.<p>

"Do you know how worried I was?" I looked away, guilty. He surprised me when he pulled me into a hug. "But, I'm glad you're back." I smiled, relieved he wasn't too mad and returned the hug. "But," he tightened his grip, "You still should have let me know." I wriggled under the pressure.

"Bro, you're hurting me."

"Uh-huh," was his response. The others laughed and he released me. I thought suddenly dawned upon me.

"Wait, your voice is deeper..." I gasped. "You went through puberty while I was gone!" I pushed his shoulders roughly. "How dare you!" Dino's face turned red.

"Cloud!" Reborn landed a kick on my brother's head, knocking him down.

"Welcome back, Cloud," He chirped from his position on Dino's head. "I'm interested to see the results of Fon's training." I waved at the baby.

"Yo, Reborn. No, worries, you won't be disappointed." Dino, groaned from underneath Reborn. I laughed.

"It's good to be back."

* * *

><p>"You got a lot taller," I commented, looking up at my brother. We were walking in the garden, alone. Just brother and sister bonding time. He laughed.<p>

"You're still as short as ever," he rebuked. I stuck my tongue out at him as we sat down on the nearest bench.

"So... found any girls lately? Because you know they won't survive unless they pass my judgment." He snorted.

"I'll answer that with another question," he replied, his face turning serious. "Did you meet any boys in China that I should be worried about?"

"Nope." I made a popping sound on the 'p'.

"Then no, I have not met any interesting girls."

"Good," I stated, with a serious face. "As soon as you meet someone, however, let me know immediately so I can start scouting and seeing if she passes my judgment."

"Ah, Cloud. Always the Joker."

"I'm not joking." He stared at me, gulping when he noticed, that I was indeed not joking.

"Well, if you get to do that, I get to evaluate any boys you like too." I chuckled.

"Oh, Dino. The world just doesn't work that way." I patted his shoulder. "You see," I dove in further explanation, "I can stop you from dating someone I disprove of, but you can't stop me from dating whoever I want. Besides, I already have a list of potential targets." His expression deadpanned.

"You have a list?"

"Well, really, I label them as my harem most of the time." I beamed, very proud of my harem. Already, Squalo and Bel are officially in the harem. When we go to Japan, I will gain Yammato, Hibari (the top two hotties), Basil (he is freaking adorable), Enma (you know, after his whole episode and he becomes nice again), Byakuran (again, when he joins the light side) and Flan. Meanwhile, while was dreaming of my future, perfect harem, Dino was staring at me in horror. Then he snapped.

"You have a harem!?" I grinned, swinging my legs.

"Yep!"

I almost winced at the intensity of his face palm.

* * *

><p>"I don't want to do this."<p>

"Nonsense. This is a perfect way to see what Fon has taught you."

"I don't want to do this either, Reborn," Dino inputted across from me, fiddling with his whip. "I don't want to hurt Cloud."

"And I don't want to fight Dino," I commented.

"And I don't care," Reborn decided. You see, my dear readers, Reborn has decided that is was a good idea for me and Dino to spar. I sighed in defeat, preparing myself. I had forgotten how much I hated Reborn and his 'bright ideas'. Dino, also giving up on the insane hope that Reborn wasn't insane, also prepared himself.

He made the first attack, which I cart wheeled out of way of and moved towards him, hoping to get closer. Knowing Dino was a mid-range fighter and that I was a close range or long range fighter made things a bit difficult. I bridged back as another lash came and made a low spin when it came back. Using the momentum of the spin, I aimed a low kick, throwing my body weight in it.

I'm pretty sure the strength of the kick caught him off guard. Since he was bigger and sturdier than me, I was pretty sure he wouldn't have been knocked down if he had been prepared. Oh well. That was what he got for underestimating me. Using his low level as an advantage, he grabbed my foot and pulled me down. I twisted and kicked him in the face, causing him to release me.

Whoops. That's probably going to turn into a black eye later. I flipped back to a standing position, and fluidly circled around him. He wasted no time recovering and soon lashed out at me again. I ducked and kicked again, but was surprised to find the whip wrapped around my leg. I scowled, knowing I had underestimated how quick the whip returned to him. He gave a definite yank, pulling me towards him. Using this against him, I brought my knee up, nailing him in the stomach. He gagged and I took this opportunity and the close range advantage to judo flipped him.

The only problem with that was that Dino was still holding the whip when I flipped him and that it was still wrapped around my leg, so I ended up going down with him. Dino's eyes widened when he saw me beside him on the ground. There was a pause. And then in one quick movement, Dino rolled on top of me. I let out an airy gasp.

"Dino! Get off!" I wheezed. "You're suffocating me!"

"Dino wins." Reborn declared from the side lines. I was relieved when Dino finally got off of me. I lay there for a while, regaining the breath that was squeezed out of me by my big brother's body weight. When I was ready, Dino helped me up and brought me over to Romario, who was acting as the nurse for the spar.

"Did I hurt you, Cloud?" Dino glanced at me, concerned. He pushed me towards Romario to get checked out first.

"Nah," I answered, a bit sarcastic, while Romario was mother-henning over me, "You just threw me around a bit. I'm more worried about that black eye you'll get. Bad for image, right?" Dino waved me off.

"It's not going to turn into a black eye, Cloud."

Of course he was wrong. Later, at dinner, I poked his pretty, new black eye. He twitched.

"I know I shouldn't say I told you so, but I t-" His glare silenced me. I smiled innocently up at him. He sighed and stirred his dinner around, pouting and muttering.

"...I should have sat on you longer."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>

**So a little sis and bro fluff in this chapter. And Dino didn't kill her! Whew, it would have been a problem for me if the protagonist died. This chapter is a little short, but I have a lot of Cloud Shenanigans planned for when she is in her tweens.**

**I AM ALSO GOING TO MAKE A CHRISTMAS CHAPTER. But, I want to get to the point where she meet's Tsuna and co. first, just 'cause. My last finals are tomorrow, and after that, Christmas break, and the last show is Friday night, therefore I will have time to update a lot. So expect many updates.**

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVORITES AND FOLLOW DOLLS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Again, nothing really changed. Younger me is starting to pick up her game. Hell yeah. **


	10. Rebel

**Chapter 10: Rebel**

**Cloud****: 10**

**Dino: 18**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR. Duh. **

* * *

><p><strong>"If you can't get permission, you can always apologize later."<strong>

**-Fred Jones (Tools for Teaching Second Edition)**

* * *

><p><strong>Family Feud: Brother vs Sister 03: Officially Your Problem.<strong>

"And with this," Dino said, signing the last of the papers, "I am officially your guardian." He smiled at me. I gave him a thoughtful look.

"So does this mean I have to ask you for permission for stuff now?" He frowned.

"You had to do that before, Cloud." I blinked.

"Oh, right. Well, this just makes if more official," I concluded, nodding my head confidently, as if that explained everything. He sighed and looked back at Romario.

"Somehow I feel like this will result in more headaches." Romario smiled.

"Welcome to our world, Boss."

* * *

><p>I walked in my room and dove for the bed, exhausted from the day's activities.<p>

"Yo," Bel greeted from in front of the TV, playing Zelda. I almost waved back at him. Almost. I blinked and shot up.

"What the _cào _are you doing in my room?" I pointed an accusing finger at him.

"What does it look like? I'm beating your Zelda game," he explained, not even bothering to look up. I pouted.

"But I was doing good!" He snorted.

"I got tired of waiting for you." I huffed. He rose from the bean bag (My bean bag!) on the floor and walked over to a chair. He tossed the bag that was laying on it to me.

"Put this on quick, we're already going to be late." I eyed the contents, pulling out a nice dress.

"What's this for?"

"Ushishishi, for you, princess," he stated. It was then when I noticed that he was wearing a nice suit and holding a box of temporary hair dye.

"And where are we going exactly?" I asked as he made his way towards my bathroom. Ignoring my question, he continued talking.

"Make sure you get dressed before I come out, then we're leaving." I bristled and stuck my tongue out as the door shut. None the less, I began to get ready, for whatever it was that we were going to.

I heard the bathroom door open as I was putting the finishing touches on my hair. I turned around and stared.

"You look ridiculous," I stated, eyeing a now dark-haired Bel. He snickered.

"Ushishi, I look hot." I rolled my eyes and grabbed my guns from the vanity, securing them under my dress.

"So, now are you going to tell me where we're going?" I said, joining him by the window as he opened it. He handed me an envelope for an answer. I scanned over it quickly. It was an invitation to a banquet for allied families, hosted by a family I didn't recognize. It said that it hoped to invite the Chiavarone into some sort of an alliance.

"If it's for us, then why are you going?" I poked Bel.

"Because it's my job to gain information from them. You're just my ticket in," he explained, sticking his head out the window. He turned to me and scooped me up easily. We jumped out the window and into the forest. He stopped when we reached a clearing and put me down. I pursued the situation further.

"Won't it be bad for the Chiavarone if we help you steal their information?" He chuckled and shook his head.

"That whole alliance thing is bullshit. They were going to kill or make a hostage out of whoever came anyway." I stared at him.

"...and so you're making me go?" He waved my worries off.

"I'm acting as your escort, princess, and we already know their plans. Besides, nothing will happen to you as long as I'm around," he stated confidently.

"Well aren't you cocky?" I commented, glancing up as the helicopter swooped down. Then a thought entered my head. "When are we getting back?" I yelled over the copter sounds. He shrugged as he climbed up the ladder that was thrown down for us.

"Probably late tomorrow morning," was his reply. I paled. Dino was going to kill me for sneaking out.

"So..." I started, trying to dismiss the thought of my impending doom from my mind, "How are you guys..." I struggled for the right word, "recovering?"

Bel shrugged again. "We were being watched for a couple years and we really just now are starting up again on missions," he explained, as if it were nothing. He turned towards me. If his eyes were visible I bet they would be narrowed. "I still can't figure out how you knew about that, princess." I smiled slyly.

"Prodigy. Remember?" He snickered at my response then glanced out the window.

"Ushishsi, we're almost at the drop off point. Get ready."

* * *

><p>"Princess of the Chiavarone, it's an honor to have you here!" I shook his offered hand.<p>

"And it's an honor to be here... sir." I replied, completely forgetting his name 20 seconds after he introduced himself. He glanced back at Bel, behind me.

"And who is the young man behind you," he asked, suspicion sneaking into his eyes. I waved him off.

"Oh, just my escort for tonight. Nobody important," I sang, knowing Bel would get annoyed at being labeled 'unimportant', but taking to the opportunity to make a jab at him anyways.

"It is a shame, however," the man continued talking, "That your dear brother could not make it."

"Oh, he's just super busy with mafia boss stuff. You know how it is," I said, my earlier enthusiasm dropping as the conversation continued. Seriously, this guy was trying way too hard to please me. Wasn't his aim to kidnap or kill me? Ah, here comes the first attempt.

"Here's your drink, miss." The champagne glass was shoved towards me.

"Oh, no thanks I'm good."

"I insist."

"Nope, I'm good." I put on a forced smile. Bel shifted behind me, impatient. You know, might as well speed this up. I was getting bored too. "But some food would be nice." They jumped at the chance.

"Of course," the man said, "I'll over see it myself." And they were off. I turned to Bel.

"Well, you ready?" He snorted.

"Of course. That whole conversation was disgusting." He began to walk off. I followed, causally looking around. I was an important guest at the party, so I was expecting to be watched.

"You know I can't just sneak around, right?" He turned the corner, entering an empty hallway.

"They'll find out you only came here for information soon enough, anyway," Bel said, reaching into his pocket for his phone. I peeked over his shoulder to see a layout of the building. Bel snapped it shut before I could get a good look. He turned left and continued towards our destination. I hesitated before I followed. I looked around the empty hallway, not seeing any security cameras or any other worry worth objects. I shrugged and followed my friend.

I mean, we made it this far, so what else could go wrong? I blinked and thought over the previous thought. I think I just jinxed myself.

* * *

><p>To my surprise, nothing went wrong while getting the information. We found the right room, and downloaded the information Bel needed. Things went wrong <em>after<em> we got the information. We opened the door. We walked out the door and we found angry mafiosi faces staring at us. The man from before was at the head of the group. He shook his head sadly.

"I'm disappointed that you would betray our trust, Princess." I full out laughed at him.

"Yeah, sure. It's not like you were trying to drug me or poison me earlier," I paused, curiosity bubbling, "Which was it anyway? Were you trying to kill me, or just drug me and use me for ransom?" He ignored my question (I huffed in his particular direction for this) and cut the conversation short by motioning for his men to attack. Bel snickered out of excitement beside me and prepared his knives. I rolled my eyes as I retrieved one of my guns, noting that maybe I shouldn't have a blood thirsty best friend.

I shrugged. At least he made life interesting and fun.

* * *

><p>"This was a horrible idea! I hate you so much right now!" I hissed to Bel as we ran down the hallway. It was safe to say that I was no longer having fun. At first it wasn't a problem since there was only about 10-15 in the first group that attacked us. We beat them senseless and moved on. Then another group attacked. And another, and another. Eventually, it was their numbers that over whelmed us. He snickered.<p>

"Ushishsi, please, you're just being a wimp. The prince can handle this." We dove behind a wall to dodge oncoming bullets. I grimaced when noticed how low on bullets I was, but shot back around the corner anyway, getting a few guys in the shoulders. I was being careful not to hit any essential spots. Bel, however, did not have mercy, like me. It was sad, but it was his job. If I had problems with straight up killing people, it doesn't mean that he does.

I bridged back as a man threw a punch at me. Hooking my leg on his arm as I flipped back up, I managed to throw him into another approaching opponent. I turned around in time to see Bel slicing a man's throat and throwing his knives at another man, who deflected them with his baton. I narrowed my eyes, recognizing the technique somewhat. Bel grabbed my arm and pulled me down the hallway and around the corner.

"I wouldn't go back there if I were you, princess," he practically sang, most likely applauding himself mentally. My suspicions were proven true when I heard the screams of agony behind us. Bel had used his razor string technique. I admit that it was a genius idea, just messy. I held back a wince, simply thinking about the mess he left behind.

I sighed out of exhaustion as more men rounded the corner ahead of us. I increased my speed to meet them, while Bel stayed back, taking out opponents long distance. As I was judo flipping one poor pathetic guy, I noticed something being thrown in the air behind me.

"Bel, smoke bomb!" I scowled when he was engulfed in the fumes, hoping that it wasn't poison and he at least had enough sense to try not to breath in the gas. I was forced to return my attention to the last remaining men in front of me. I clubbed one with my now bullet-less gun and kneed another in the stomach. The last was trying to escape. _Trying_. I threw my gun at him and nailed him in the back of the head, effectively sending him to the ground. I immediately turned around, noting that the smoke had pretty much cleared completely, revealing Bel crumpled on the ground with two other men beside him. I rushed over and checked his pulse. I sighed.

He was alive. If he were conscious, I would have hit him for being stupid enough to be caught in something like this. Varia-quality my ass. My thoughts were interrupted as noises of approaching company hit me from around the corner. Luckily they were a little ways off, but still coming. I huffed as I hefted Bel's body onto my back and stood up.

He is _soooo_ going to owe me for this. There was no way I could win a fight against a group while keeping Bel out of harm's way. I scanned the hallway as I ran (mentally thanking Fon and thousand and one times for making me run with the weight of an average human on my back, to prepare me if a situation like this happened). My eyes lit up when I saw an air vent, just big enough for me and Bel to crawl through (Or, for me to crawl through while dragging Bel with me). Using one of Bel's knives I found in his pocket, I unscrewed the cover off and crawled in first. Once I was in, I dragged Bel with me and place the cover back on. As soon as it was somewhat secured, the group that I heard earlier paraded around the corner and passed our hiding place. I froze and watched them. A minute or so after they were gone, I army crawled onward through the vent (ungracefully dragging Bel's body behind me awkwardly. If the situation hadn't been serious I would have taken pictures for black mail).

I groaned as I thought of the challenge ahead. It's going to be such a pain to get out of here.

* * *

><p>The helicopter dropped us off at the Varia headquarters at 3:00 AM. I burst into Squalo's office at 3:15. He looked up at me, startled, from his paperwork covered desk.<p>

"What the hell are you doing here?" He questioned, too tired to say 'voi'. Instead of answering, I threw Bel on the floor.

"I believe this," I pointed at Bel, "belongs to you." He glanced down at Bel and back up at me. I trudged over to the nearest chair in his office.

"I helped on a Varia mission. The least you can do is let me sleep," I slurred as I collapsed into the chair. Squalo sighed and nodded, returning to his work. I guess he was too tired to argue. I sloppily pulled my phone out and texted Reborn (not even daring to text Dino).

_To: Reborn_

_From: Cloud_

_At Varia HQ. Helped with Mission. Cover for me until I return. I.O.U._

I sent the message and fell into blissful sleep, vowing to kill Bel in the morning for dragging me into this.

* * *

><p>Turns out I was too tired and sore from sleeping on a chair to kill Bel that morning. I woke up to an empty office, disheveled, still in a dress and grumpy. I somehow managed to find the kitchen and opened the cabinets, elated to find pop tarts. Mammon came in later, when I was on my second box or so. He stared at me. I continued eating.<p>

"What are you doing here?"

"Bel used me to get into a banquet last night to get information. We got caught getting information. Fighting. Bel got knocked out with a smoke bomb. I had to carry him back here. Too tired to go home. Slept on chair in Squalo's office. Got hungry. Here I am." I recited, without missing a beat. Mammon nodded, excepting the tale.

"Sounds like something he would do," he commented as he opened the fridge.

"Where's everyone else?" I asked out of curiosity (and needing to know if I needed to watch out for Levi. Still pretty sure he wants to kill me).

"Squalo and Levi are out on missions, every other officer is here." I nodded, acknowledging him response. Then I spotted the coffee machine.

"Hey, can I have coffee?" He shrugged.

"Why should I care?" I took that as a yes. Ten minutes later, Mammon and I were sitting at the kitchen table in silent bliss, content with no talking.

Lussaria ruined that moment. He flounced in (clearly a morning person. Ugh), and surveyed the kitchen. He stopped dead in his tracks when he spotted me. It took a moment for the squeal to come out.

"Cloud!" He practically pounced on me, picking me up and nearly suffocating me (again. He was making a habit out of this). "Why didn't you tell me if you were coming, sweetie?" Mammon sighed out of frustration, his peace and quiet shattered, and made his way out of the room.

"Because," I managed to choke out, "I didn't know I was coming myself." The flamboyant man sat me down (thank god) and gave me a questioning look. I repeated what I had told Mammon earlier. Lussaria nodded in understanding.

"Sounds like something Bel would do." He then gave thought to my outfit. "You look horrible!" I blinked.

"Thanks." That's when Bel walked in. I glared at him. He snickered.

"Ushishi, you look terrible."

"I'm aware." He sat across the table from me. I couldn't help it. I kicked him. He frowned.

"What was that for?"

"For getting knocked unconscious and leaving me to get out on my own while having to drag your sorry, unconscious ass behind me," I hissed, still pissed from the previous night's events. He shrugged.

"That's not the prince's fault." I sighed in defeat.

"Aren't you supposed to be a genius?" He grinned.

"Ushishi, of course." I shook my head.

"Well then, genius, get me some clothes to wear so I can get out of this stupid dress." I paused. "How did you even know what size I was?" He snickered.

"The prince has his ways." I stared at him as he walked out, wondering if I did, indeed, befriend a creeper. I thought about Bel's character. Okay, scratch that. I know for sure that my friend is a creeper.

Man, I need better friends.

* * *

><p>I ran into Dino when I was trying to sneak back into my room. The sad part was that I was almost at the door, too.<p>

"Cloud!" I froze, my hand reaching for the door handle. I turned around mechanically to see Dino lightly jogging towards me with Reborn and his shoulder and Romario in tow. He looked me over.

"You look awful!" He stated. My eye twitched.

"Yeah, I know," I grumbled, annoyed that three people had told me the same thing.

"Are you feeling any better, Cloud?" Dino asked, concerned.

"Um..." I didn't know how to respond at first, but luckily, Dino kept talking.

"Reborn told me what happened..." I paled. "... about you throwing up and everything. No wonder you look terrible; you've been sick all night after all." I blinked. I actually didn't think Reborn would cover for me after all. I glanced at baby tutor, who gave a sly smirk. Crap, I owed him now. I clutched my stomach. Seeing this, Dino opened the door for me and escorted me to the bed. He noticed my clothes.

"I've never see you wear those," He noted suspiciously.

"There my, um, clothes I wear when I get sick," I muttered, the fact that I owed Reborn still making me feel sick. Dino nodded, seemingly excepting my answer.

"Get well soon,'sis," I nodded in response and watched as he shut the door. Reborn peeked through the crack before it shut, giving me a meaningful look.

OK, I was almost positive that I was actually going to throw up now.

* * *

><p><strong>Family Feud: Brother s Sister 03.5: Officially Your Problem continued<strong>

"Hey, can I get some tattoos?" Dino stared at me from across the table."

"No." I frowned.

"But you have tattoos," I argued, crossing my arms. He sighed.

"Do as I say, not as I do, 'sis," He chided. I rolled my eyes.

"Dino, that's one of the most inefficient, pathetic arguments I have ever heard," I dead panned, "and it's not like I want to get anything bad. I just want the family symbol, you know, the one that looks like a sun with a C, on my arm like you have and then one on my stomach that looks like this." I brought out the picture. He stared at it quizzically.

"Why do you have it with you?" I shrugged.

"To be prepared." He shook his head.

"No way, Cloud. I'm against you getting a tattoo anyway, but you are definitely not getting one on your stomach. End of discussion." He finalized, putting his mafia boss face on. I hated when he used his mafia boss voice in arguments. It's like an unfair disadvantage.

I held back the urge to stick my tongue out at him. Ha! He thinks this discussion is over?

Well, it's not over yet, bro.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Bel," I said, looking up at the ceiling, "Do you think I'm pretty?" We were both laying on my bed. Bel had once again snuck into my room. He said he was just bored, but I'm pretty sure he pissed off Squalo in one way or another and he was just running away. He looked up from my One Piece manga.<p>

"Yeah, sure." I beamed.

"But your personality is a complete turn off." I frowned.

"What?" He snickered and continued.

"Sure, your looks are good, but you start talking and ruin it with your blunt attitude." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"What do you know, anyways?" I brushed it off, trying to ignore my wounded pride. He shrugged.

"But I guess that I have to deal with that, since you are the only princess the prince knows." I pursed my lips.

"About that whole marrying thing," I sat up and crossed my leg, facing him, "I don't know if I want to set that in stone." He frowned.

"Are you saying that the prince is not good enough to marry?" I shook my head.

"It's not that. After all, you are in my harem, and we all know that only the hottest make it into my harem. It's just that I have more options than you. What if I meet someone I really love and want to marry them instead?"

"Who cares," he stated, "Unless you find me another suitable princess, you're stuck with me." I thought it over.

"How about this," I proposed, "If I'm not dating somebody that is marry-able by 28, then I'll marry you, assuming that you haven't found another princess." He thought if over, and then nodded.

"Sounds acceptable," He reasoned, "and now that that discussion is concluded," he put down the manga, "the prince is bored of reading One Piece."

"Oh, come on, dude, One Piece is awesome," I defended.

"I'm not saying it's bad, I'm just stating that we should go out and do something." I thought it over.

"Nope, Dino would kill me. I barely got away with it last time," I frowned, remembering the previous time I 'went out' with Bel, "and besides, I'm still mad at you for that." He snickered.

"Ushishi, then this can be an apology for that," he said, jumping off the bed, "and you can just tell your brother that I kidnapped you, so it technically won't be your fault." I mulled over the plan.

"...so, like a girl's night out?" Bel shrugged.

"Sure." He cocked his head, a smile slipping onto his face. "Ushishi, you guys have a garage, right?"

* * *

><p>"Can you even drive?"<p>

"I'm 12."

"Oh... Proceed." We were currently sitting in one of the many cars in my family's garage. Bel put the key in the ignition (it was graciously bestowed upon him by me, who knew where they hid the keys to the car) and started the car. It purred to life and we were off. I gripped the arm rest, terrified at the speed we were going.

"Bel, you're going to get us pulled over!" I complained. He scoffed.

"No, I'm not. The prince is too good to get pulled over."

Apparently not. About five minutes later, we had police sirens flashing behind us. Luckily, Bel wasn't stupid enough to draw more attention, and pulled over. The man's eyes widened when he saw us.

"Aren't you a little too young to drive?" He asked seriously.

"I'm sure we're more than responsible enough, officer," Bel said, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulled out a fat wad of cash, "and for all your trouble and concerns, here's a little something for you." The man eyes the wad suspiciously. I could see the temptation in his eyes. For a moment, I thought he wasn't going to take it. I was wrong.

"Just be careful not to crash or something," the officer said as he walked back to his own car. I waited till the police car was out of site before I turned to Bel.

"Did you just bribe a cop?" He nodded. "Okay then."

"Ushishi, where to next, princess?" I put my hand on my chin, thinking. My stomach growled, interrupting my train of thought.

"I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat."

* * *

><p>"When I said 'let's get something to eat'," I said between mouthfuls of candy, "I did not mean for you to crash into a candy store and steal almost all the candy in it."<p>

"Oh, please," Bel said, "it's not like you stopped me, princess. And you said you were craving something sweet." I huffed, but didn't deny it. My eyes widened as I saw a particular sign.

"Turn around now! I just got an idea!"

Five minutes later, we walked into a tattoo parlor. 5 more minutes and I was laying in the chair, the tattoo artist over me, holding the pictures I have been carrying around for the past month of the tattoos I want. The man eyed me and Bel.

"Aren't you a little too young to be getting tattoos?" Bel sighed, twirling on of his knives on his finger.

"Just hurry up and give her the tattoos. The prince is getting impatient." The man shuddered and turned back to me.

"Hey, does it hurt to get tattoos?" I got my answer soon enough.

* * *

><p>"It was <em>so<em> worth it," I said when we were back in the car, looking proudly at the bandage on my arm. Bel snickered from the driver's seat.

"Thanks for paying for it, hubby!" I sang. He laughed.

"Oh, so the prince has earned the title back now?" I nodded.

"Yep. Apology accepted," I congratulated him, "I should probably get back home before Dino notices I'm gone." He nodded in agreement. We arrived back in record time (thanks to Bel's maniac driving skills). He parked the somewhat damaged car in the garage and bid me farewell. After I waved him off, I entered the mansion.

And I almost walked right back out. Turns out Dino _did_ notice I was gone and he was ready for me when I came back. He dragged me to his principal's off- I mean, Mafia don office.

"So, you stole a car, drove the car without a license, deliberately crashed the car in a candy store, stole almost all the candy in the store , drove away like nothing happened, got tattoos without my permission, and then returned home thinking you wouldn't get caught?"

"You make it sound bad. I view those as accomplishments." He groaned rubbed his temples. "And besides," I continued my case, "Technically, I was kidnapped, so I cannot take credit for anything that happened." I paused.

"Except for the tattoos; that was my idea," I claimed, pulling up the sleeve of my shirt, revealing one of my bandages that covered my tattoo, "Isn't it cool? I got one on my stomach too!" Dino stared at me with tired eyes, then he let his head fall to the table, making a loud '_thump_' sound. I'm pretty sure he just gave up.

* * *

><p>I walked back up the familiar steps, the loathing I had before filled with nostalgia. I smiled as I saw the house that has somewhat come to be my second home.<p>

"Fon!" I called, running up to the door, "I'm back!" I stuck my head inside and was greeted with the kind smile of my master.

"Welcome back, Cloud. There's someone I want you to meet," he said, and gestured to a figure that was slightly smaller than him halfway hiding behind him. I smiled, gently, already knowing who it is. I bent down as Fon whispered words of encouragement in her ears. She shyly toddled towards me.

"_Hello. My name is Cloud. What's yours?" _The small child with the over large head gazed up at me, not hiding her curiosity.

"_Ipin,"_ she managed to get out after a few seconds.

_"Well, Ipin, since we have the same master, I'm basically your sister, okay?"_ she blushed. I tensed, hoping I didn't embarrass her too much. Luckily, nothing happened. She didn't respond, so I continued._ "So you can call me jiě jie if you want, and I'll call you mèi mei if you don't mind."_ This earned a small smile from Ipin.

_"Okay...jiě jie."_ I took her hand gently and we walked towards the back training grounds, with me talking gently to her the whole way, telling her about myself.

Fon smiled and followed us, proud that his two students were getting along so well.

* * *

><p><strong>Family Feud: Brother vs Sister 03.8: Officially Your Problem continuation of continuation. <strong>

"Hey, can I have a pet?"

"No."

"Bu-"

"Cloud, this is not going to turn out like last time where you snuck out and got a tattoo. You are not getting a pet and if you step one foot into a pet store anywhere near here, then I will immediately know." I was silent, for once.

Dino could be scary when he wanted to be.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Remember, kiddies, tattoos are permanent, so be sure you really want one if you ever get one! Writing Bel and Cloud together is fun! Also I like torturing Dino with Cloud's antics. He just freaks out easily when it comes to her.**

**AND I'M EXCITED! I REALIZED THAT CLOUD WOULD ONLY BE 13 WHEN SHE MEETS TSUNA 'CAUSE HER BIRTHDAY IS IN JUNE. SO THAT CHAPTER WILL BE ONE CHAPTER EARLIER THAN WHAT I THOUGHT.**

**OK, I think that's all I want to say. **

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS, DOLLS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Again, nothing changed in this chapter. Go slightly younger me, for not making as many mistakes. **


	11. What Happiness Is

**Chapter 11: What Happiness Is**

**Cloud****: 11**

**Dino: 19**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR Mario Cart, The Mighty Thor, Frosty the Snowman, or Frozen **

* * *

><p><strong>"People always think that happiness is a far-away thing," thought Francie, "something complicated and hard to get. Yet, what little things can make it up; a place of shelter when it rains – a cup of strong hot coffee when you're blue; for a man, a cigarette for contentment; a book to read when you're alone – just to be with someone you love. Those things make happiness."<strong>

**-Betty Smith, _A Tree Grows in Brooklyn_**

* * *

><p>I stared at Dino. He stared back.<p>

"..."

"... what?"

"You can drink now, right?" He blinked.

"I could drink ever since I was sixteen, Cloud."

"Oh," I piped, cocking my head. "So do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Drink." He shifted uncomfortably.

"Why do you want to know, 'sis?" he stammered hesitantly. I shrugged.

"Curiosity killed the cat," I replied. He thought over the question for a while.

"I only drink at parties or other social events like that, and it's really only out of etiquette," he answered truthfully. "Other than that, I rarely drink." I nodded in understanding, but he noticed the thoughtful look was not completely gone. He quirked his eyebrow. "Anything else?" I shook my head.

"Just wondering what kind of drunk you would be..." the thought dwindled off and my eyes wandered around the room, giving the idea that I had become bored with the subject. Dine sighed and smiled, used to my strange way of thinking. He, of course, thought the subject was dropped, but it was still, clearly on my mind. I was trying to decide if it was really worth it to get Dino drunk just to see what kind of drunk he was. I decided against it. Wasn't worth it to put him through all of that.

And so, with those final thoughts on the subject, you could clearly see how I would be baffled when I found a crying, and a _very_ drunk Dino wandering around the hallways. He saw me. I froze. He sniffled, and then draped his arms around me, wailing.

"Cloud!" he whined, throwing his entire weight on me, almost causing me to buckle. Luckily, I could somewhat hold him up. He cried into my shoulder and frankly, all I could do was pat him awkwardly on the back. "Cloud, I-I just want to let you know," he blubbered into my shoulder, "what a great" ,insert _'hic_', "little sister you are!" I nodded and started to lead him down the hallway, not really knowing what else to do. I was hoping to find someone that actually knew how to handle this.

"You-You're such a great little sister," he repeated as I nearly dragged him along, "But you do a lot, of bad stuff! Why do you always do bad stuff? Bad 'sis! Bad 'sis!" He pushed away from me as he scolded me, only to fall flat on his face. I sighed and tried to pick him up again. He was still muttering nonsense when I got him moving again. "And you never listen to me! Why don't you listen! I'm always like 'no!" and then you run off and do it..." he trailed off into nonsense again. I rolled my eyes, regretting wanting to see Dino drunk.

He is definitely a crier. In fact, I almost cried out of joy when Romario appeared around the corner.

"Boss!" He immediately took Dino off my hands, which was such a weight lifted off my shoulders (literally and metaphorically). Ignoring Dino's drunk wails and ramblings, Romario turned to me.

"Princess, you know you really shouldn't spike your brother's drink." I stared at him in disbelief.

"You," I pointed at him, "Think I," I pointed at myself, "would do this to him?" I pointed at the blubbering mess that was my brother. Romaria looked at me, clearly confused.

"You mean this isn't your fault?" I huffed.

"No. I wouldn't do something like this."

"Oh. Then I apologize for accusing you."

"Thank you," I allowed, still miffed about the accusation. "Anyway, what are we going to do with Dino?" I asked, blankly watching Romario try to pry Dino off the ground.

"We're taking him to his bedroom, were we'll try to keep him until he sobers up," Romario explained, deciding it was more effective to drag Dino to his room rather than actually pick him up. I followed behind at my own pace, not wanting to get close in case Dino starts feeling huggy again.

It took some time, but we eventually made it and managed to get Dino in the bed. Then Bono walked in.

"Princess! You really shouldn't do something like this." I sighed.

"I actually had nothing to with this," I admitted, and then as an afterthought added, "for once." Bono became embarrassed and bowed in apology. I waved him off and permitted him to stand up.

"Ivan is bringing some water to help," Bono informed us. Then Ivan walked in.

"Princess, I can't believe you would do this to boss!" I threw hands up in frustration.

"Okay, every time something bad happens, it does not automatically mean that I am the cause of it!" I declared. There was a beat of silence. Dino broke it.

"Why do you have to be so mean, Cloud!?" Dino wailed and crawled deeper into his covers.

"Well, this turned out to be more interesting than I thought," Reborn chirped, literally appearing out of nowhere and landed on my shoulder. Dino squeaked and hid from view. I threw an accusing glance at Reborn.

"This is all your fault, isn't it Reborn?" He smirked not showing any signs of regret.

"I overheard your conversation with Dino earlier, and became interested. It was a chance to test his alcohol tolerance and to see his personality change. Turns out he doesn't change much," the baby observed. I rubbed my temples.

Of course this was all Reborn's fault.

* * *

><p>In the morning, Dino had a horrible hang over. I sat by his bed, supplying him with water and Tylenol. He gave me an accusing look.<p>

"How could you do this to me, Cloud?"

I flat out face palmed, not even bothering to correct his accusation. It was times like these when I remembered how much I truly hated Reborn.

* * *

><p>I let myself relax, closing my eyes and giving in, just as Fon had taught me. For a while, I felt at peace, that is, until Bel sniffed beside me. I held back a grimace, but managed to ignore it, eventually falling back into pace. Then he coughed. He blew air out of his mouth. He sighed. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore.<p>

"Can you not?" I asked him, opening my eyes to glare at him irritably.

"Not my fault that it's so boring," he complained, putting his hands behind his head and falling back on my bed.

"You're the one who wanted to learn how to meditate in the first place," I reminded him.

"Yeah, that's because it looked cool at first," he retorted, sitting himself up and tilting his head, eyeing my hair. I sighed in defeat and sifted so that my back was facing him. "But now I know it's boring."

"Meditation isn't about looking cool," I chanted as he began braiding locks of my hair back. "It's an ancient art for training the mind to promote relaxation and develop-"

"Princess, even you explaining it is boring," He interrupted me as he continued to work. I sighed in defeat, giving up on the subject.

"Well, at least you tried it."

* * *

><p>"So, technically," I said, petting Enzo, "This is Leon's baby." Dino thought about it.<p>

"...sure?" I nodded, accepting the answer.

"So how'd you get him?"

"I got him during the incident."

"The incident?" I repeated, confused. Dino reflected my expression.

"I didn't tell you about the incident?"

"Okay, first things first, let's stop repeating the incident," I suggested, becoming annoyed by the repetition of the words. "What didn't you tell me?"

"I'm surprised I forgot, actually," Dino admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with one hand and petting Enzo absentmindedly with the other. "It happened while you were in China. That was the one time I was actually glad you weren't here actually. They could have used you against me as well. It was a rising family that was becoming troublesome. They challenged me to fight them, and when I didn't accept, they took the whole town hostage. I had to go down alone to face them."

I raised an eyebrow, surprised at this revelation. I knew Dino had overcome a challenge to basically pass Reborn's training, but I had honestly forgotten about it, and didn't think that it could have happened in my absence.

"I was scared," he admitted. "I knew they were all depending on me, and that scared me. But I knew that I had to protect them as well. I couldn't let them die because of me. So, I fought them, and somehow… I won." He gave a nervous chuckle. "The whole thing was a blur to me, really. I just remember a bunch of them coming at me, and I remember knowing I had to protect them, and knowing that I couldn't let you down… then Leon did this weird floating, glowing thing and a new whip and Enzo popped out… and I won. I still can't even believe it now. And that's what happened."

"And you just forgot to tell me this?" I asked, slightly offended. He laughed and reached over to ruffle my hair. I leaned back and stuck my tongue out at him.

"Sorry, 'sis, I guess I was just so happy you were back."

"I still don't see how Enzo helped you beat all those guys."

"He's special," Dino stated proudly, "He absorbs water and expands. He can get as big as a house!"

"Cool," I acknowledged.

"I know ri-" Dino made a swift hand movement, knocking Enzo off the table. We watched in horror as he hit the water.

Maybe it wasn't the best idea to sit by the pool. Dino immediately grabbed my arm and ran. Well, tried to run. He ended up tripping. You see, his dear and loyal subordinates were not around at the time. I wriggled out of his grip and ran.

"Cloud? You can't just leave me!" I kept running.

"Leave the weak behind!" was my war cry. My speed increased as a gigantic shadow developed. I heard a gigantic thud and I was thrown down by the force. I pushed myself up and brushed myself off, feeling rather lucky because I was not crushed. I turned around to survey the damage. I whistled, clearly impressed. I walked up to Enzo's enormous face. He snorted, ruffling my hair.

"Well, bub," I informed him, "I think you may have just killed your master." I heard a groan from underneath the turtle.

"Or not."

* * *

><p>Dino approached me while I was sun tanning by the pool. I tilted my sun glasses down, scrutinizing his forced smile.<p>

"What do you want, bro?" I asked, pushing my sun glasses back up and closing my eyes.

"Well, dear, wonderful, sweet, beautiful, lov-"

"Even though all of that is true, I'd much rather you spit it out."

"I need you to go on a date." I rose and quirked an eye brow at him, not fully knowing how to respond.

"... aren't you against me dating, Mr. Over Protective?" He sighed.

"A family has offered an alliance with us and the next boss is your age. Reborn somehow gave him a picture of you and the kid wants to go on a date with you. We checked out the guy and he doesn't seem dangerous; nothing you can't handle. Plus, Bono and Ivan will be nearby. I just need to know if this guy is trustworthy." He waited for response, the look on his face clearly saying that he was expecting me to refuse. I shrugged.

"Why not? I'm bored anyway," I hopped off the lawn chair and headed towards the mansion, leaving behind a very surprised Dino.

Come on, how bad could this guy be?

* * *

><p>A couple hours later, I was sitting inside of a nice restaurant, lazily glancing around. I rolled my eyes when I spotted Bono and Ivan, sitting a few tables away. Playing with the hem of my dress, I waited, wondering why they even made me wear a dress in the first place.<p>

"Yo! Yo! Cloud Chiavarone, right?" I looked up and gaped at the boy making his way towards me. His eyes bulged when he saw me. "Whoa! You look WAY prettier in the picture! What happened, huh?" I gaped at the guy. His hair was spiked and he was covered in chains, jewelry, tape and bandages. It's like he was trying way too hard to look punk. He plopped down in the chair in front of me. "Oh well, since I'm such a gentleman, I'll stay." I continued gaping at him.

"And who are you exactly?" I managed to choke out after a sip of water.

"I'm the Tomaso family's eighth generation leader-to-be, Longchamp Naito!" I blanched. No. Nope, nope, nope, not him of all the people I had to go on a date with. He noticed my expression.

"Peace! Peace! No need to be starstruck!" He exclaimed, getting the wrong message. I thought back to his earlier words.

"Exactly what picture do you have of me?" He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to me.

"You look SUPER cute in the picture, but a bit of a letdown in real life!" He commented, looking me over again. I scanned over the picture. It was a photo of me when I got back from helping Bel with his mission. _W__ǒ__ c__à__o, _I did look horrible that day (I'm not even going to question when Reborn took that photo). I return the photo to Longchamp, who gladly took it. I blinked at him. He blinked back. Then logic returned to me.

"Nope. Not going through this," I concluded, standing up to leave. Longchamp jumped up to stop me.

"Wait, we were supposed to talk about the alliance!" I ignored him and tried to leave.

"Don't worry, Longchamp! I'll make sure she stays!" Mangusta, the butler dude that follows Longchamp around, jumped up from one of the tables and pulled out a gun. I immediately slipped into defense mode, about to take my own guns out. I saw Bono and Ivan rise behind me. The other patrons in the restaurants panicked, some even fled. I relaxed when I realized that he wasn't aiming at me, but at Longchamp. But that could only mean...

He shot and it hit Longchamp right in the forehead. He fell back, and for a moment, didn't move. Then he got back up and hugged his knees, only in his underwear.

"The desolation bullet will definitely change her mind!" Mangusta shouted in early victory behind me.

"My past has been complete darkness, my future shall be complete darkness..." Longchamp drawled, tears streaming down his eyes. "I came here all the way from Japan to try to prove that I can negotiate, but I know I can't. I tried to prove that I could be a good boss, but I'm a complete failure. I also came because I knew there would be a girl here that looked kind of cute from the picture, just to get back at my ex."

"Surely, you feel sorry and want to negotiate with him now!" Mangusta said to me. I eyed Longchamp, who was still on the floor crying.

"Pathetic." And with a flip of my hair, I walked out the door. The tall butler looking man fell from the shock.

"She withstood the effects of the desolation bullet! The Chiavarone is formidable indeed!"

* * *

><p>I was sun tanning again when Dino approached me for the second time.<p>

"So, Cloud," he started, "How'd it go?"

"He was too pathetic to negotiate with," I answered without looking up. Dino sighed and shook his head.

"Whatever you say, 'sis."

* * *

><p>I walked into Dino's office only to find him almost consumed by paper work. I blinked and peeked around the stacks.<p>

"You look like you need some fun," I noted. He blankly stared at me.

"Does it look like I have time for fun?" He said, gesturing all around him. I shrugged.

"Can't you just, I dunno, put it off until tomorrow or something?" He stared at me.

"...This is why I'm the boss, not you," he explained with a huffed, "and besides, Reborn would kill me."

"Oh, come on!" I whined, "Don't be such a stick in the mud!" I gasped, an idea popping into my head. "You know what we should really do?" I peeked over a pile of papers at him. He eyed me warily.

"What?"

"Two words, bro: Mario Cart." He allowed a smile.

"I guess..." he tried, "...I could relax for a little while."

* * *

><p>"I thought you said this would be relaxing?" Dino stammered, focusing on not falling off the rainbow bridge. I barely shrugged, having trouble myself.<p>

"I believe I said it would be fun, not relaxing," I quipped, noticing that I was ahead of him. His smile returned when he caught up. I frowned. And then I promptly reached over and pushed him off of his beanbag. He scrambled back up just in time to see me win.

"Hey, Cloud! That's cheating!" I snorted.

"Like I care if you can't handle a little sisterly push." He smiled, accepting the challenge, and tackled me.

"Give up, yet?" He asked, thinking he had me in a lock. I scoffed.

"You really think you can beat me in hand to hand?" Before he could think about it, I pinched a pressure point under his arm, forcing him to lighten his grip. I slipped out and used his own weight to flip him around. This time it was me who had him in a hold.

"We both know who the better one in this category is." I released him and we both laughed.

I'm really glad he's my brother.

* * *

><p><em>"Wow, Ipin! That was great!"<em> I complimented her from the side lines as she defeated her sparring opponent. _"You're incredibly promising for your age!"_ Fon nodded in agreement beside me. Ipin blushed madly.

And then the Pinzu-Timed Super Explosive began counting down. We froze, and then sprang into action I picked her up, only having 8 seconds left, and looked around wildly.

_"What should I do with her?"_ I turned to Fon.

_"You have to throw her."_ He said, way too calm for the situation.

"Throw her?! I can't throw my little si-"

_"2 seconds left."_ Forgetting my earlier argument, I threw my dear little sister. The blast sent a wind the ruffled our hair. Fon sighed and I cupped my head in my hands, shaking it in disappointment.

_"I am a horrible, horrible big sister."_

* * *

><p>I knocked on Dino's door and stuck my head in, excited about the thick coat of snow in the yard.<p>

"Do you want to build a snowman?" He smiled sadly at me, working from his desk.

"Sorry, Cloud. I'm just too busy," he confessed. I frowned, genuinely dismayed.

"You're always busy," I mumbled. Ever since I returned from China this year, Dino and I haven't spent much time together at all.

"Sorry, Cloud. Maybe some other time." I sighed, hearing the same exact words I had been hearing over the past few weeks. I slipped out, leaving him alone again. I leaned against the wall outside the door.

"I just miss my big brother."

Unbeknownst to me, Dino had heard me through the crack in the door. He sighed sadly, knowing the feeling. He glared at the work in front of him. Determined, he decided that this wasn't going to stop him from spending time with what really mattered to him; his family.

After all, He missed his little sister too.

* * *

><p>"Do you want to build a snowman?" I looked away from the window to see Dino peaking his head through the door, fully dressed for the snow. I eyed him curiously.<p>

"I thought you were too busy." He walked up to me and placed a hat on my head.

"I'm never too busy for family." I grinned, and ran out the door to get the rest of my snow gear on. 15 minutes later, we were outside, beginning our creation. Once we created the body, we stood in front of it, observing and calculating.

"I think we should make it Frosty the Snowman," was Dino's suggestion. I blew a raspberry.

"Boring," I sang, "We should make the mighty Thor!" I smiled up at him. He laughed.

"Sure, Cloud." And we set to work. We put dead grass on his head for hair, a regular sledge hammer for Mjolnir, a regular grey hat for his helmet (sticking spoons in for the wings) and old red drapes for the cape. We stood back and admired the snowy god. I turned to Dino only to get hit with a snowball.

"Ah! Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!" I screamed, as I "died", falling back into the cushioning snow. Dino lay down beside me and we rested for a bit.

"I'm glad, Cloud," Dino admitted, "You're actually acting like a kid for once." I rolled over to look at him.

"What do you mean?" He mimicked my movement to where we both lay, facing each other.

"I worry about you, Cloud. You always seem older than you are; like you have some duty to fulfill. That's why I like moments like this for you, where you actually act like a kid," he smiled sadly. "It makes me worry less. Which makes me feel even sorrier when I'm not there for you." I was surprised and felt guilt for letting so much show. I didn't know Dino was so observant. I grinned at him, trying to cover up the sad feeling that had inhabited the earlier happiness.

"It's okay, Dino," I dismissed his worries, "I'm alright." He seemed to except my smile and lay back on his back, gazing up at the cloudy sky as more snowflakes gently wafted down.

"Do you want to make a snow angel?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Inspired by the song "Do you want to build a snowman" from Frozen, which I haven't even seen yet, but after listening to three songs, I AM DYING TO SEE.**

**So, lots of Dino and Cloud bro and sis fluff, obviously because of the song. I feel very squishy and warm inside right now. I have been crying because of this song. Please excuse my feels. I just simply can't hold all of them.**

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS, DOLLS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: added a little story with Bel, but other than that nothing changed. Hell yeah. **


	12. What Remains

**Chapter 12: What Remains**

**Cloud****: 12**

**Dino: 21**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR, One Piece, Firefly, or Lucky Charms.**

* * *

><p><strong>"It is funny how despair can so soon become an old companion."<strong>

**-Jacqueline Carey**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Family Feud: Brother vs Sister 04: We've Got Style<span>**

"Thanks for the jacket, Dino," I said, fingering the fur trimmed hood.

"You're very welcome. You see, Cloud, when you're in the mafia, you have to have style," he explained, gesturing to his own jacket and outfit, "and nothing in more stylish than a fur trimmed hooded jacket." He seemed proud of this statement. So, of course, I shot him down.

"I can think of a lot of things more stylish, actually," I commented and popped my gum nonchalantly. He twitched. I took this as a cue to continue.

"I mean, for a mafia boss and everything, don't you dress kind of casually? You look like a teenager." He didn't move. I kept going.

"Sure, it looks cool, but how do you think other boss's in their fancy suits see you?" Ah, there he goes. He turned towards me, forcing a smile.

"And do you think you dress any better little miss sweat shirts every day?" I glared at him.

"Actually, I believe I do, Mr. Cargo pants."

"Aren't girls supposed to wear dresses and skirts?"

"Well, excuse me if jeans are easier to fight in!" Behind us Romario sighed as we continued our pointless bickering.

"Just admit it," I stood up on my tip toes, failing to look my brother in the eyes. "I have the best style!" Dino chuckled.

"Sorry, Cloud, but it's me." We all jumped as a gun shot was fired. We shakily turned around to see Reborn leaning against the wall.

"You're both wrong," he said, tilting his fedora up. "It's obvious that I have the best style." We gulped and nodded.

Nobody questioned Reborn.

* * *

><p>The tenth generation boss of the Chiavarone walked down the hallway, a worried look plastered on his face. He hadn't seen head or tail of his little sister for 2 days, which either meant she was planning something, or something was wrong. Either thought ended with him worrying even more.<p>

"Ivan!" He called out, spotting one of his sister's personal body guards. The man stopped and politely bowed to his boss. "Have you seen Cloud?" An awkward look crossed Ivan's face.

"Yes, boss." Dino waited.

"So where is she?"

"She's in her room." Dino frowned, knowing that Cloud could only stay locked up into her room for a day at the most, before she got either hungry or bored enough to wander out. Ivan remained silent with the same expression.

"Is she OK?" Dino pursued. The man fidgeted, trying to think of the right answer.

"I suppose... technically, she's fine..." Ivan struggled with his words, trying to explain the princess's condition. Dino grabbed his subordinate's shoulders, his fears for his sister increasing.

"Is she injured?" Ivan looked to the side, still not knowing how to answer. Frustrated, Dino pushed him aside and ran to his sister's room.

"Wait, Boss!" Ivan yelled after him, but Dino ignored the warning. He threw open the door when he arrived.

"Cloud! Are yo-"

"GET THE CAO OUT YOU _SHEE-NIOU BUN TYEN-SHUNG DUH EE-DWAY-RO!"_Doing the wisest thing, Dino quickly retreated back to the hallway. He slammed the door and leaned on it, shaking from fear. Romario and Ivan ran up to him.

"Boss! Are you alright?" They approached him. He gazed at them, his eyes wide.

"What demon," he hissed, "has possessed my sister?"

"Well, boss..." Romaria started off, scratching the back of his head. "You see..." he whispered the remainder of his sentence into his boss's ear. Dino blushed madly.

"Oh. That explains a lot."

"No need to worry boss," Romaria reassured him. "We are now fully prepared." Romaria held up a rather large gift basket, filled with a DVD set of Firefly, loads of chocolate, about 5 boxes of Lucky Charms, One Piece DVDs with Cloud's favorite episode burned into them and a gigantic panda stuffed animal. Dino felt somewhat relieved after he saw the basket. "We just need a 'lamb' to deliver it," Romario said, look hopefully at Dino. The boss frowned and pointed at himself.

"You want me to give it to her?" He asked. "You want me to just walk in there, and give it to her. Did you not just hear what just happened when I tried to check up on her? Actually, I think that all of Italy heard what just happened."

"Actually, Boss," Ivan inputted, "That is the best reaction we've had from her yet." Dino stared at him in disbelief. The basket was handed to him. Then Reborn appeared out of nowhere.

"Go on, Dino. Be the good, caring big brother you're supposed to be," He chided and kicked his student into the room as soon as the door was opened. He froze, holding out the basket as a sacrifice as the door slammed shut behind him. He glanced around the dark room and his eyes landed on a lump under the covers. He warily approached it.

"...Cloud?" He called softly. The lump sniffled. "Cloud...I brought you some…things." The lump shuffled until a sloppy mess of strawberry blonde popped out. Tired greens eyes peeked out from underneath the mass. She eyed the basket, much like a cat stalking prey. Dino set it down on the bed and backed away slowly.

"OK, Cloud," he said with raised arms, "I'm going to leave no-" The lump pounced suddenly and attached itself to Dino, crying.

"Dino! Thank you so much!" It wailed as Dino tried to unclasp her hold him, desperately trying to make his way towards the door. "I love you so much! You're such a good brother!"

"Abort! Abort mission!" Dino called out, trying to get his men on the other side to help. He managed to somewhat wriggle out of her grasp and dashed towards the door.

"Sorry, Cloud! Love you!" was his apology as he shut the door. Breathing heavily, he slid against the door and looked up at his men.

"Please," he gasped, "Do _not_ send me back in there."

* * *

><p>I woke up to the sound of a baby crying. Grumbling, I rolled over, wrapping a pillow over my ears, trying to go back to sleep. I sat straight up in bed when my brain actually processed that I heard a baby crying. I ran downstairs only to see a frantic Dino trying to comfort a very mad baby.<p>

"Dino! I thought I told you I had to approve of the girl before you could get serious!" He looked up at me, startled.

"It's not mine Cloud!" He responded, still rocking the child. "It was on our doorstep and I don't know whose it is." I blinked.

"Oh. Okay, then." I tried to go back up to my room.

"Oh, no you don't," Dino stopped me. "You're helping me with this!" I scrunched my nose, the crying already giving me a headache.

"Why do I have to help?" I whined, acting like a baby myself.

'Because I said so," was his irritated reply. I sighed and made my way down the stairs. I looked at the baby.

"Did you feed him?" I asked.

"What?" I stared at my brother blankly.

"Did you feed him?" I repeated, slower than the first time.

"...oh." I smacked my forehead.

* * *

><p>"So, what do babies eat?" He asked over the sound of the baby, still crying. I shrugged.<p>

"I don't know. Baby food, maybe?" He gave me an irritated look, and then passed the baby off to me.

"I'll just mash up some green beans," he decided, getting a can out of the cabinet.

"We want to feed the kid, not torture him." Dino rolled his eyes and got to work. About five minutes later, I was busy feeding a somewhat now pleased baby (because frankly, I don't trust Dino not to make a mess when the others aren't around). "Where's everybody else?" I asked, while it was on my mind.

"Romario is out getting supplies for the kid and I have the others checking the area for anyone who lost a baby or just gave one away." I nodded, acknowledging his response.

"Yeah," I said, agreeing, "We want to find Luffy's family as soon as possible." Dino raised an eyebrow.

"Luffy?" I nodded. "Cloud, you can't name him. It's not like we're keeping him and he probably already has a name." I shrugged.

"Well, we needed something to call him until he's out of our hands." I argued, wiping off Luffy's face when I finished feeding him. Dino sighed and seemed to except my logic. Romario decided to enter at that moment, caring bags of baby supplies.

"Here boss," he said setting them on the table. He saw me, and greeted me good morning, then turned back to Dino. "This is all he supplies you need. And we'll help in any way we can.'

"Any of you have kids?" Dino asked, hopeful. They shook their heads. Dino frowned. "Didn't you help take care of Cloud when she was a baby?"

"No offense to you, boss," Romaria admitted, "but I was much to bust taking care of you when the princess was this young." Luffy chose that moment to start crying again. I sniffed the air and scrunched my nose. I held Luffy out to Dino. He stared at the kid in horror. I looked at Dino pointedly.

"Does is look like I'm going to change his diaper?" Dino sighed in defeat and took Luffy, walking out of the room with his men following hesitantly. Reborn jumped on the table in front of me, which almost made me jump. I glared at him accusingly.

"You don't have anything to do with this, do you Reborn?" He smirked. I sighed. "This is all one of your elaborate schemes, isn't it?" He nodded.

"It's to test Dino's abilities with children." Reborn explained. I blinked.

"And this has to do with being a good mafia boss how...?"

"Not important." He continued talking before I could tell him, that, in fact, that was important. "I don't want you to help Dino with this, since this is a test, so you're going to spy on him with me."

"...Okay?"

* * *

><p>"This is ridiculous," I huffed, fidgeting in my flower disguise, "Nobody is going to believe that we're just flowers."<p>

"Not if you don't believe it," was Reborn's inspirational response. He were spying on Dino, who took Luffy outside to play. They were sitting on a blanket, Dino dangling a baby toy in front of the kid, and Luffy becoming easily entranced by it.

"How did you even get a costume in my exact size?" I hissed.

"I have my ways." I froze as a couple of people walked by. Surprisingly enough, they didn't seem to notice us.

"You've got to be kidding me," I relented after they passed. Reborn smirked.

"I told you my disguises were good."

* * *

><p>So after wearing a bird (spying on Dino from a tree), a fish (spying on Dino from the lake), and a mouse (spying on Dino from inside the house) costume, it turns out that Dino was actually doing a pretty darn good job at taking care of Luffy. He seemed to forget about trying to make others help and took the responsibilities on himself.<p>

"I have to admit, he's going to make a good dad," I said to Reborn.

"I suppose he's passed the test," the tutor admitted and nibbled on a piece of cheese that went with the costume.

"Does that mean that I can get out of this ridiculous costume now?" Before Reborn could answer, the doors to the room burst open.

"Boss! We found the mother, bu-" Poor Ivan was thrown aside by a frantic mother. She stormed up to Dino, who was too shocked to move.

"How dare you kidnap my little Zoro!" She screeched, taking the baby out of his hands and then promptly smacking him across the face. Then she stormed out of the room, cooing her poor 'mistreated' child. I gave Reborn a wary glance.

"...You kidnapped a baby just to see if my brother could handle a kid?" He shrugged.

"It was all for the sake of turning him into a great mafia boss." I sighed, not even bothering to say that this had nothing to do with becoming a mafia boss.

Reborn was one sick, sadistic home tutor.

* * *

><p><em>"I just have to hold my breath, right?"<em> I asked, preparing to spar against Ipin (who was rather nervous about it). Fon cocked his head.

_"I suppose that's the idea, but it's easier said than done, Cloud."_ I waved him off.

_"I'll be fine."_ I looked towards Ipin and smiled. _"You ready mei mei?"_ She nodded prepared her Gyoza-Kempo. We started.

Turns out, I could hold my breath for about a minute. I inhaled the garlic. My muscles faltered and I fell to the ground.

In the end, I was not fine. Ipin was ashamed of herself.

_"I'm sorry Jie Jie."_

* * *

><p>Dino passed me in the living room while I was reading One Piece. He glanced down and continued moving on, stopped suddenly and ran back.<p>

"Cloud," He asked, trying to hide his shock, "Are you reading that in Japanese?"

"Yeah," I replied, flipping the page, not even sparing him a glance. He stared at me for a while. I sighed and looked up. "What?"

"I didn't know you could read Japanese."

"I can speak it too," I informed him. I raised his brows in shock.

"You can?" I nodded.

"While we're on the subject, I can also speak Mandarin, English and French."

"...you can speak 5 languages?" He asked in disbelief. I tilted my head.

"Well, I can't speak French fluently yet, but I know enough to get me by." Dino was still staring at me.

"How?" was all he could mutter. I shrugged.

"Bel helped me out a lot. He's already teaching me a bit of German." He blinked. I smiled, a thought popping up.

"You know, soon I'll be able to sing the song 'I speak six languages'." I grinned, extremely happy about the thought. Dino was still staring. My stomach growled.

"Welp," I jumped off the chair, "I'm going to the kitchen._ Bis spater, Bruder_." I walked off, leaving behind a very bewildered Dino.

* * *

><p>"Schisandra can calm anxiety and helps with nervous, immune and endocrine systems. Gotu Kola helps with anxiety too, but also mental fatigue and irritability…. Maybe I should have made you tea with gotu kola in it instead, now that I think about it." Squalo sighed and rolled his eyes across the table from me.<p>

"This is fine, brat," he grumbled. "As long as it helps with insomnia like you said."

"Also, emotional balance and anxiety. A lot of herbs help with anxiety now that I think about it," I added thoughtfully, taking a sip of my own tea.

"Why the fuck do you know so much about herbs and teas anyway?" Squalo asked, taking a sip of his tea, and then trying to hide his expression after tasting it. I shrugged, ignoring his reaction.

"I made a lot of teas with Fon while I was in China," I began, then, after putting more thought into his question, my attitude became reserved when I truly realized why I always held onto information like this. "And Mama always liked those sort of things. She used to love teaching it to me." I didn't try to hold back my clear sadness, because I knew it would be useless to.

My obvious sadness of the subject startled Squalo, and it was clear that he didn't know how to handle this.

"T-the tea you made me is really good," he lied awkwardly. I allowed a small smile.

"Liar."

* * *

><p>"You sure you have to go, Reborn? There's still a lot I want to learn, you know." Reborn looked up at Dino.<p>

"Sorry, but my work is done here. You're no longer Pipsqueak Dino." Dino smiled at this. "And anyways," Reborn continued, "I have to go train the next Vongola boss. I hear he's a complete loser." Dino laughed.

"Don't be too hard on him, Reborn."

"Don't tell me what to do." The baby then turned to me.

"Cloud, you're the smart one. Keep your idiotic brother out of trouble." I mock saluted him.

"Aye, aye, captain."

"Ciao." And with that Reborn left, heading off to Japan. Dino turned and went back into the mansion, a little sad that the tutor he had grown close to was leaving. I wasn't that sad though.

I knew that we would see Reborn again soon enough.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**AND ONTO THE ACTUAL PLOT!**

**This is the end of the 'growing up' arc, where Cloud did most of her character development Next will be the 'Meet and Greet' arc (that what I dub the daily life arc as in this story, since Cloud will really just be meeting a lot of characters and messing around).**

**Ok, I might past the Christmas Omake next, but I haven't decided yet. Oh well, you'll find out next update.**

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS, DOLLS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Again, only one ad-in. Hell yeah…. I'm pretty sure I'm saying Hell yeah way too much. **


	13. Hello No-Good-Tsuna

**Chapter 13: Hello No-Good-Tsuna**

**Cloud****: 13**

**Dino: 22**

**Disclaimer****: I no own KHR, however I do have to take credit for Cloud and her actions *sigh***

* * *

><p><strong>"I think everything is happening all the time, but if you don't put yourself in the path of it, you miss it. When you travel, you put yourself out there. It's not always great. Sometimes it's terrible. But other times… it's not so bad."<strong>

**-Gayle Forman**

* * *

><p>Apparently, Dino had the idea that I was not going with him to Japan. Ha, silly big brother.<p>

"Cloud," he questioned warily, a big group of our subordinates behind him, ready to leave. "What are you doing?" He eyed my backpack. I smiled at him.

"About to go to Japan with you, silly!" I lightly pushed his shoulder. He was not amused.

"Cloud, I wanted you to stay here." I laughed at him, slinging my arm around his shoulder (which was a little awkward because of the height difference).

"Oh, Dino, Dino, Dino," I tutted, shaking my head, "You see, bro, you have two options: you could either refuse to take me and leave me behind, which will result in me getting to Japan my own way, or you could choose option b, which will end in me safely sitting in the plane right beside you, so you can watch my every move and make sure I don't get in trouble." He sighed and shook his head. I grinned up at him.

"Option B?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Option B," he grumbled and walked out the door, motioning for me to follow. A few men let out chuckles behind us. I smiled and winked back at them, knowing they were on my side. I skipped after my brother, excited to go to Japan for the first time.

* * *

><p>After we got situated at the hotel we went straight to Tsuna's house. Of course, I didn't 'know' we were going to Tsuna's house. I just 'knew' we were going to the tenth generation Vongola boss's house.<p>

"Ciaossu, Dino, Cloud." Reborn greeted us at the gate. Dino smiled.

"Yo, Reborn! Long time no see."

"It hasn't been that long, No-Good-Student." Reborn hopped down and went into the house. Dino laughed at his response and then turned to his men before he followed the tutor.

"Romario, Bono, follow me, and bring the chair Reborn told us to bring with you. The rest of you stay out here. Only let Sawada family members pass through." They all responded accordingly. I walked in after them. Nana Sawada greeted us. She bowed and we respectively bowed back.

"I'm Nana Sawada!" She chirped, immediately giving the impression of being kid hearted. "I'm so happy to have friends of Reborn visit!" Dino smiled back at her, showing his charisma.

"Thank you for having us, Sawada-san. I'm Dino Chiavarone." He bowed. "And this is Romario and Bono," he gestured to the men behind him who also bowed.

"It's nice to meet you, and please, just call be 'Mama'! That's what everybody else says anyway," she peered around Dino to look at me. "And who's this lovely girl?" I stepped forward and gave a little bow.

"I'm Cloud Chiavarone," I introduced myself, realizing when I was actually saying my name, that, yes, it was weird. "I'm Dino's sister." Mama nodded in understanding. A dreamy look came on her face and she cupped her cheeks in her hands.

"Oh, if only Tsuna could date a nice, pretty girl like you or one of the other cute girls that keep popping up~" She cooed. She snapped out of her trance, and waved us off. "Well, you can go play with Reborn now! Don't mind me at all!" She returned to the kitchen. Romario and Bono picked the chair back up, but I jumped in it before they could go up the stairs. They laughed and continued their trek. They put it down in Tsuna's room (which was pretty messy). Dino approached me.

"Come on, Cloud. Out of the chair."

"No way. They carried me up here in this chair, and they're going to carry me down in this chair," I said, growing rather fond of the leather seat. Dino sighed.

"Dino needs to look intimidating and dramatically turn around in the chair to meet Tsuna, Cloud," Reborn explained, once again appearing out of nowhere. "It looks super cool that way." I huffed, agreeing with him and got out of the chair. I plopped on the bed, still wanting somewhere comfy to sit. Spying a manga lying on the ground, I scooped it up and began reading it, waiting for the tenth generation Vongola boss to be. We ended up hearing him before we saw him.

"Reborn! This is all your fault isn't it?"

"Here he comes," Dino commented and spun in his chair to face away from the door. Reborn continued to sip his cup of coffee. I looked up as the door opened, revealing a wide eyed, frantic looking, mousy middle school boy with gravity defying hair. I bit back a laugh. Yep, that's our protagonist.

"We've been waiting for you, Tsuna." I returned my attention to the manga as they began talking, losing interest. Tsuna wasn't one of the ones I really wanted to see, after all. I didn't even look up for Dino's dramatic introduction.

"I traveled from afar to pay you a visit. I'm Chiavarone's tenth generation boss, Dino." I snorted. He was having way too much fun with this. There was a beat of silence as Dino evaluated Tsuna. "He's no good!" My brother decided, making Tsuna jump. "You don't have the aura. The way you represent yourself is terrible. You don't seem ambitious either. There's no sense of anticipation. You look unlucky too."

"You're legs are short," Reborn joined in.

"And you have horrible taste in manga," I inputted, flipping through the book and eventually abandoning it.

"Your disposition to be a boss is zero," Dino concluded. Tsuna gaped at him, horrified that someone he just met would judge him so harshly. I had to hold back another laugh. Dino looked so smug. Romario and Bono laughed from behind Tsuna, who turned to Reborn and asked the obvious question.

"Hey, Reborn! Who are these guys?" He whispered. Well, tried to whisper. It's not like he was being quite about it.

"Dino is your Senor apprentice." I huffed when I wasn't introduced.

"Don't let the things I said get you down, Vongola tenth," Dino reassured him, "Before I met Reborn..."

I kind of dozed off looking around the room at this point. Wow, it was pretty messy. Didn't know Tsuna was such a slob. Well, I kind of did, but that's not the point. I think they're talking about Dino's training now. Oh, he just laughed at Tsuna. Something about being the same. I lazily watched as Dino reached into his jacket pocket.

"If you keep refusing..."

"HIEK!" I rubbed my ears at the high pitched sound. Did that really just come from Tsuna?

"He'll bite you." He pulled Enzo out. Tsuna nearly fainted. They all laughed at a horrified and embarrassed looking Tsuna. My attention was drawn towards the door as Dino talked about the turtle and its origins. I grinned when Ipin came in, ignoring the other kid completely. Wait, was that Lambo? I paled, knowing that troubled followed this brat like a shadow.

"Hey Lambo! Didn't I tell you not to play with grenades?" Tsuna scolded, confirming my suspicions. Then the brat tripped, got up, and noticed he had pulled the pins. I watched blankly as the grenades went flying out the window. Dino's action were immediate. He looked almost too cool as he efficiently got rid of the grenades and landed below, the explosions making a beautiful scene above. I whistled, impressed. "He's so cool..." Tsuna admitted, watching him from the window.

"Dino, why don't you stay over?" Reborn yelled down from the window.

"I'm okay with it, but what about these guys?" I heard Dino answer back from below.

"You can let your men go back."

"Hey," Tsuna defended himself, "Why are you deciding these things on your own?" I almost laughed at how helpless he was. There was mumbling from below, then Dino yelled back up.

"All right. I might as well give the Vongola's 10th boss a piece of advice or two then." Tsuna blushed, not used to the attention.

"For me? How nice!"

"Aren't you lucky Tsuna?" Reborn then turned to me. "You can stay too Cloud." Tsuna whisked around and squealed, just now noticing me.

"W-Who are you?' He pointed a shaky finger in my direction. I pointed at myself and tilted my head.

"I'm Cloud, Dino's little sister," I quipped. "So I guess, since Dino's your brother of sorts, that I'm technically your sister."

"Sister?" I nodded.

"You can call me Oneesama." I chirped. Tsuna paled.

"Princess, we're leaving now," Romario informed me before him and Bono walked out the door.

"'Kay." I waved them off and turned back to Tsuna, who was still gaping at me.

Oh, this was going to be _fun_.

* * *

><p>"Here, enjoy." I dug in immediately, used to eating with chop sticks. I noticed Dino didn't have the same talent. Of course, he didn't notice.<p>

"So, ask me anything, my cute sworn brother." He waited, and then thought of another question. "Oh, yeah, do you have family yet, Tsuna?" Reborn decided it was his place to answer for his current student.

"Right now, there are Gokudera and Yammoto. Also a few candidates: Hibari, Sasagawa Ryohei and-"

"They're just my friends and seniors!" Tsuna inputted to correct Reborn. A dreamy look came on my face.

"Potential targets for my harem~" Dino gave me a warning glance.

"No, Cloud." I stuck my tongue out at him, giving him the silent message that 'you can't stop me' and continued eating. Tsuna and Reborn didn't seem to notice this exchange.

"But why did you come to a person like me, Reborn? You seemed to be doing just fine with Dino-san."

"Vongola is the center of our allied families. That's why it gets priority above all others in every aspect." Of course, this caused Tsuna to freak out. Nana looked up, noticing the mess my brother was making.

"Oh, Dino-kun. My, my, you spilled your food…" Dino looked horrified and embarrassed. I sighed. And so it begins. Reborn explained Dino's weakness to Tsuna as I chatted quietly with Ipin beside me, in Chinese (I was very happy to see her again, since it had been a while since we last talked).

"Cloud-chan," Nana called, bringing me out of our conversation, "I'll go prepare the bathtub for you." I smiled at her.

"Thanks, Mama!" I chirped and began to take my plate to the sink. Dino frowned.

"Why do you get to take a bath first?" He complained.

"Because I'm a lady, that's why," I retorted and turned around, flipping my hair in the process. Then Nana screamed. Dino immediately rushed into action. Well, tried to rush into action, but ended up tripping. I sighed again and shook my head. Running past Dino (who was trying to give one of his lame excuses) I rushed to the bathroom. Moments later Dino and Tsuna came, almost barreling me over.

"_Shén, _you really need to take better care of your pets, bro."

"U-UNBELIEVEABLE!?"

"Crap. That Enzo. When did he escape?" I turned to Dino as Reborn was explaining the turtle's ability.

"Your pet, your problem." I patted him on the shoulder and joined Nana back in the kitchen, saving myself from getting injured by my klutz of a brother.

"Oh, Cloud-chan!" She greeted me as I entered. "What was that thing?"

"Oh, just Dino's pet. It's nothing," I waved it off and began helping her with the dishes (something I would never normally do. But, hey, this lady just immediately took us in when she just met us. I felt like I had to something to help her out).

"You don't have to help if you don't want to Cloud," she chided over the sounds of chaos coming from down the hall. I sweat-dropped.

"No, it's fine. I want to help." I heard more yelling, but Nana continued lightly humming and smiling. I blinked. Unbelievable. I knew she was dense, but this was just unbelievable. The noises ceased and the group entered the room again, most of them looking bruised and tired. I finished drying off the dishes and approached them.

"So, how'd it go?"

"We have to go to a public bath," Tsuna miserably informed us.

* * *

><p>Nana had let me stay in Bianchi's room, since she had been out for a few days now (it helped when I said I knew her and that the older woman wouldn't mind if I used her room for a day). I had a peaceful sleep that night, and woke up a bit earlier than usual. I got dressed and made myself presentable (which for the most part meant that I stumbled blindly around the room, still not fully awake, until I found a pair and of jeans, a tank top and a hoodie, put those on and threw my hair up in a ponytail), then I made my way into the kitchen, drawn by the smell of food.<p>

"Good morning, Cloud-chan!" Nana greeted me from the stove. Ugh, another morning person. I waved numbly at her and scanned the room for coffee. Luckily, there was a pot already made. Feeling my energy rejuvenating already, I made a beeline to the life energy I need every day and poured myself a cup. I sat down in bliss at the table. I noticed Nana looking worriedly up at the second floor.

"Is something wrong, Mama?" I regretted asking almost immediately.

"Tsuna-kun isn't up yet..." she replied, and turned towards me, smiling."Will you go make sure he's up, please? I don't want him to be late for school." I nodded, not wanting to refuse the nice woman, and went back up the stairs. Deciding that it would waste time knocking on the door, I peeked my head inside instead.

"Yo, Tsuna?" My eyes adjusted to the darkness, spying the guy lying on the bed, still asleep. I approached him and bent down to his level. I poked him in the cheek. "Yo, Tuna-fish." He grumbled and scrunched his nose.

"Tsuna, your mom says you're going to be late for scho-" he shot up instantly and bolted out of the bed.

"Wah! I'm going to be late!" He started undressing immediately. He froze when he noticed I was still there, midway through taking off his pajama pants. We stared at each other.

"You're one awkward little duckling aren't you?" I commented blankly and sipped my coffee. His face turned a deep shade of red and he pushed me out of the room, slamming the door shut. I shrugged and went back downstairs and made my way out the front door, looking for fresh air. I blinked when I strolled out the door, finding almost all of Dino's men waiting outside.

"Good morning, Princess," Romario greeted, at the front of the group. Deciding not to question their reason for being here (hey, they were Dino's men, not mine) I simply waved back. The majority of them returned my wave. The Tsuna rushed out the door, mumbling to himself about the reason he overslept.

"There's a commotion outside the house again!" He shrieked when he noticed the guys.

"Buongiorno, Tenth," Romario said to Tsuna, who just sputtered something almost incoherent about Dino. Speaking of the don...

"Why are you guys here? I didn't ask you to pick me up." A tired looking Dino, who most likely just woke up, leaned out of the doorway. He walked over to stand beside me as his men gave their lame excuses for 'just ending up here'.

"GOOD MORNING, TENTH." My eye twitched at the volume, still tired. Tsuna's eyes bulged and he became embarrassed again. I glanced over to see a silvered headed, punk looking guy who was now glaring in our general direction after he too, gave the same excuse for coming here. I recognized him instantly, but kept a blank face as usual.

"Who are they?" Dino smirked and leaned on the gate, looking rather cool and mature.

"Hey smoking-brat! It's our first time meeting, right?" Gokudera eyed my brother's tattoos, recognizing them almost instantly.

"That tattoo… Bucking-horse Dino!"

"Hey, Tsuna and Gokudera." I glance over at the new voice. My eyes lit up instantly. A very tall and athletic looking guy with black hair slung his arms around the two boys. Wǒ cào that boy was attractive. As usual, I kept my fangilring on the inside.

"What are you guys doing? We're going to be late!"

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna exclaimed, looking at the baseball player with wide eyes. Gokudera looked less than happy with his arrival. Yamamoto's eyes met Dino's and he smiled.

"Hello."

"Yo." He looked at me. I grinned and waved. He smiled and waved back. My dreamy look returned.

"He's going to be in my harem," I said in almost a trance like state and tried to follow the trio as they walked off. Dino grabbed the hood of my jacket and dragged me back. I glared at him accusingly. How dare he stand in the way of my dream! While I was pouting, Dino was questioning Reborn about Tsuna's family (he appeared out of nowhere again. I label it as one of the many talents of Reborn).

"You seem concerned."

"Of course. After all, it's about the family of the sworn brother who reminds me of my past." I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you did used to a huge loser, didn't you?" I paused. "Actually, you kind of still are." Dino twitched.

"So, what do you think? Usable?" Reborn chirped. Dino shrugged, deciding it wise to ignore my comment.

"Maybe. The most important thing for a family is trust. As long as I don't see that, I don't approve them," Dino answered, like the boss he is.

"Then why don't you test them out?" Dino looked up at Reborn quizzically.

"Test..?" I smiled and leaned out from beside Dino.

"Sounds fun. Can I come?"

* * *

><p>"Can I drive?" The response was immediate and from everybody in the car.<p>

"No." I pouted, crossing my arms and puffing my cheeks out.

"Can I at least lasso Tsuna?" Dino snorted.

"Like you could do that. I'm used to fighting with a whip, so I'll be doing that part." I huffed, questioning why I even wanted to come.

"Oh, that's why," I muttered as I looked back, the car dragging Tsuna rather comically behind us. I jumped out of the car as soon as it stopped, watching Gokudera and Yamamoto run off in the distant (mostly focusing on Yamamoto), their minds set on saving Tsuna.

"Their minds are set on rescuing Tsuna," Dino voiced my thoughts, walking past Reborn, looking as the duo turn the corner and disappear. "They lost their composure, but they're trustworthy." He turned to Tsuna, who was squirming on the ground. I eyed him in amusement, but made no move to help. Luckily, Dino and Ivan had it covered.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, DINO-SAN!" Tsuna whined as they untied him. Dino just smiled at him.

"Sorry, sorry," he gave his weak and un-meaningful apology, "I just had to test your family."

"Test..?"

"Boss, Princess, we're leaving."

"'Kay, good work guys." I waved them farewell.

"See ya'." They got in the car and drove off, just when I was remembering how bad Dino gets when they're not around. I lazily blinked as the car rounded the corner. Oh, well. It's not like Dino will die of clumsiness... maybe. I looked back at Tsuna and Dino, who were having a conversation about family and what not.

"Ah. I forgot to tell you guys," Reborn called their attention. I popped a piece of gum in my mouth, already knowing what he was going to say. I was actually a little excited about seeing Tsuna in Dying Will Mode.

"Momokyokia is a real, existing Yakuza in this town." Cue Dino and Tsuna freak outs. They continued yammering about Reborn going overboard and people actually getting hurt. I popped my gum, and placed my hands in my pouch pocket, patiently waiting.

"Fine," Dino concluded, after realizing his former tutor had fallen asleep. "Let's go, Tsuna, Cloud."

"Eh... Let's go?" Tsuna squeaked.

"This time you should do something for your family." Dino said and then grabbed his arm as Tsuna began protesting. My brother ran off, with Tsuna in tow. I tried to follow. Tried, but Reborn stopped me.

"Wait, Cloud." I sighed and turned, bouncing on the balls of my feet, excited to get some action after so long.

"What's up, demon tutor?" Either accepting or ignoring his title, he handed me two notes. I raised my eyebrow at him.

"Tsuna and his family are going to be late for school because of this," he explained, "So I'm sending you to deliver a note to the school, excusing their tardiness." I pouted and began to argue (something rather dumb on my part).

"Bu-" An evil glint shown in the baby's eye.

"You owe me, Cloud."

"But, I wa-"

"You owe me," He repeated, "and I never forget when someone owes me." I sighed in defeat, logic returning to me. There's no arguing when it comes to Reborn. He seemed to notice that I gave in.

"The first note is directions to Nammimori Middle. The second one is the note you need to give them." Unfolding the first note, I nodded, acknowledging his words. I began walking off, wondering why Reborn would waste my debt to him on this simple task.

* * *

><p>I found Nammimori easy enough (Reborn's directions were very clean and precise. Typical of the hitman), and walked in. After some looking around I found a small office near the entrance. I walked in, finding a middle aged woman, typing away at a small desk. I approached her and held out the note Reborn had given me. She glanced at me, took the notes and scanned them.<p>

"Those are tardy notes for some students," I explained, mainly just to break the awkward silence. She frowned and handed me the note back.

"I'm sorry, but I can't accept these." I sighed.

"Look," I leaned on the desk, "I really don't have a choice in this. I really need you to except these, because I'm pretty sure I'm going to be blamed for this if you don't. Who do I need to talk to, if you can't accept them?" She paled suddenly looking nervous. I waited. She didn't answer and shifted her eyes. "Well?"

"T-That would be the disciplinary Committee." I blinked. Oh. Okay, that makes sense.

"'Kay, so where do I need to go?" I asked, deciding not to freak her out with my foreknowledge.

"The reception room," she stammered. He eyes widened as I walked out the door. "Wait? You need a visitors pass at least, if you don't have one he mi-" I cut her off, waving my hand behind me.

"It's no big deal, I'll just be in and out. It's just a tardy note." I continued on my way, stopped, realized I didn't know where the reception room was, went back to the secretary, coaxed the directions out of her (she was really against me going, clearly not knowing that Reborn was way worse than the disciplinary committee). I knocked on the door when I eventually found it, my logical side hoping that the fearsome leader wasn't in there, and my harem-member-seeking side insanely hoping that he would. Luckily, the logical side won out. A very tall dude with a ridiculous hair style opened it. He blinked down at me. I owlishly blinked back up at him.

"You don't have a visitor's pass." He pointed out.

"Okay, look Elvis," I said, annoyed with everybody's persistence for me to have a visitor's pass when this task would really just take less than ten minutes, "All I need to do is have somebody accept this tardy note for three students that go here." I nearly shoved the note in his face. He took it and looked over it with a tired expression. His frown deepened.

"The only one who could accept this would be the president of the Disciplinary Committee," he explained, looking back at me and handing me the notes. I crossed my arms and puffed my cheeks out, now knowing why Reborn used my 'I.O.U.' on this.

"Then where can I find him?" I asked, leaning to one side. The guy sighed and looked to the side, then back to me.

"Look, you're obviously foreign and don't know how things work around here, and you seem like a nice girl," He started, "Those are the only reasons I haven't kicked you out yet, really. Plus, I've already had a long day." The last part almost came out as a sigh, his lack of sleep and excitement showing. "The best thing you can do right now is just forget about it, and let those three get their own punishment for being late. You really, really don't want to get the president involved." I stared up at him, my expression still blank.

"I really don't have a choice in the matter," I explained, "You see, I kind of owe a very dangerous guy who gave me this task, using my I.O.U. and I'm pretty sure I'm not going to survive if I come back with the notes. Therefore and in conclusion, I really do need to see the president guy." I confirmed, staring him in the eyes. He blinked at me, shocked, then sighed and walked out into the hallway. I happily followed, almost skipping. Looks like I wasn't going to die by Reborn's hands today. Of course, I knew what I was getting into, but after seeing Reborn torture Dino for years, I'd rather face an angry, blood thirsty carnivore than that Demon tutor any day. Plus, I was really curious to see just how hot Hibari was in real life. We went up a couple flights of stairs until we reached the door to the roof. He hesitated before he opened it and turned back to me.

"You sure you want to do this?" I nodded, smiling. He sighed and shrugged. "Your funeral, foreign girl." He opened the door. I blinked, having to readjust to the sunlight and stepped out into the air. I glanced around and looked down to see a pair of cold, grey eyes glaring at me.

_Gao yang jong duh goo yang, _he was so much hotter in person. The manga and anime didn't even do him justice! I was right to place him and Yamamoto in the top two of my harem. Wǒ cào, he was hot! Of course, I had to keep a blank face as I fangirled in my head. Luckily, I had mastered this art over the years. He rose (I mentally squealed; A squeal so squealy that even Tsuna would be impressed) and looked me, over his eyes narrowing.

"You don't have a visitors pass," he commented. He looked back to the guy behind me, and raised as eyebrow. Despite meeting his holy-hotness, I spoke to speed things up, knowing I had to get back soon.

"Look, I just need someone to accept this note. You're the Disciplinary Committee president, yeah?" His eyes snapped to me again. He scowled.

"Visitors must have a visitors pass to enter the school." Oh. I see we were still on that. I sighed and walked towards him.

"Yeah, I know. Look this is really a life or death matt-"

"Herbivores must be punished for breaking the rules," his eyes narrowed and he swiped at me with one of his tonfas, already in range. I ducked and spun around, purely out of instinct. I held up my arms, showing him I meant no harm.

"I just need you to accept the note," I said warily and held the paper out to him. I really didn't like the way he was eyeing me now. The guy that led me up here was staring at me, shocked. I'm pretty sure all negotiations were cut off after that point. Hibari lunged at me again, both tonfas drawn this time. I 'eeped' (pretty sure Tsuna was rubbing off on me) and began dodging his wild attacks.

"Stop," I cart wheeled out of the way, "I just," bridge, "need to," back flip, "give you," hand spring, "a note from Reborn." He stopped, almost mid-swing, his eyes widening ever so slightly.

"You know the baby, huh?" he mused. I relaxed a little bit. Well, now I know how to stop Hibari, I thought, relieved. I just needed to mention Reborn.

"That means you're strong, right?" A bloodthirsty smirk slipped on his face.

...huh?

He came at me, with more vigor than before. Okay, never mind. Never mention Reborn to Hibari EVER AGAIN. Reborn always leads to trouble. I should probably know this by now. I'm such an idiot. I continued dodging. Halfway through, I realized a number of things:

1. Hibari wasn't as good as I thought he would be. Actually, this made sense since Dino hasn't trained him yet.

2. He was actually rather predictable too, which made it easier to dodge.

3. My fighting style gave me an advantage over him. Since my moves were mostly evading, his straight forward attacks weren't hitting at all. This actually made me a bit excited and eventually, I was caught up in the fight. I was exhilarated because I hadn't had a proper fight light this in a while, which is why I slipped up and actually returned an attack back. Seeing the opening, I hooked his incoming arm and Judo flipped him. I froze, realizing what I had just done. He blinked back up at me, surprise clearly written on his face. The guy from earlier gaped, his mouth wide open. For a moment or so, nobody moved. I stood there, above Hibari looking at him.

I just judo flipped Hibari._ I judo flipped Hibari. _I didn't know whether to feel elated or terrified. Enveloped in these thoughts, I barely had time to lean back to avoid an incoming tonfa. Flipping back and landing on top of the fence surrounding the roof top, I tenderly checked my grazed chin. Luckily I had leaned back in time to avoid a full on hit. Hibari rose, practically fuming. I gulped and looked around, giving up on talking to him completely. I had just pissed off Hibari, so the logical thing to do was to look for an escape route. I saw a tree behind me. I looked back up to see Hibari stalking towards me. I did the logical thing:

I jumped off the roof and towards the tree, Hibari's swing just missing me. Branches smacked me in the face as I entered the foliage. My arms desperately scrambled for a branch and eventually latched onto one (rather painfully too). I precariously hung there from my arms for a moment, until I scrambled up onto the branch, hugging it. It bounced under my weight, but settled after a while. I sighed in relief, knowing it was a stupid move, but a desperate one. I was not about to face a pissed Hibari. After making sure I was secure and not in danger of falling, I looked back up at the roof, via the hole I made when I fell only to find Hibari angrily glaring down at me. I could help it; I childishly stuck my tongue out at him. I regret nothing. I squinted my eyes at him as he gripped to railing. Oh, come on, he's not actually stupid enough to jump, is he? I mean, I barely even made it. My eyes widened as he jumped over.

Ok, he was actually stupid enough. I closed my eyes and hugged my branch tighter, so I wouldn't fall off when he hit the tree. I felt a tremor or two and then stillness. I cracked on eye opened, first looking at the branched around me to make sure Hibari wasn't on one, ready to regain his pride up in the tree. I sighed and pushed myself up to where I was straddling the branch when I didn't see the prefect. I looked up to see the dude leaning off the roof to see if his president made it. I looked down and almost burst out laughing, but caught myself before I enraged the guy even more than I had already. Hibari roughly pushed himself up off the ground and bushed himself off, the action somehow looking graceful. I smiled, victorious as he glared at me, from below this time.

"Having fun?" I asked, deciding to go all out since already wanted to kill me.

"Get down here, herbivore." My expression dead panned.

"No." He scowled and raised his tonfa. I scoffed. He wouldn't throw his tonfa up here. I ducked my head, a tonfa sailing over me. I narrowed my eyes at him, hugging the branch once again. Okay, I was wrong again. I decided to quit assuming things about Hibari. He scowled up at me again. Then he tried to climb the tree. This didn't worry me as much, since there weren't any stable bottom branches. It was actually a little bit funny watching him trying to climb it. It only worried me when he got within 4 feet of me. So, I did the natural thing. I took my shoe off and chucked it at him, hitting him in the forehead and effectively sending him down to the ground. If he had both his tonfas he would have made it. He landed in a somehow graceful crouch. I stared down at him lazily.

"You know it kind of sucks that you can't climb a tree," I drawled, ignoring the fact that I would've had troubling climbing it too, especially if someone was throwing her shoe at me. I mentally shrugged. I don't mind admitting that I was hypocritical. "And, yet" I continued, deciding to throw him a compliment for his own pride, "you still manage to fall on your ass gracefully. Talent, really." I was beyond the pint where anything I said could anger him more.

We stared (in his case, he glared) at each other for a while and then a thoughtful look popped up on his face. He sat down beneath the tree and leaned against it. I raised an eyebrow.

"What exactly are you doing?" I questioned.

"You have to come down sometime herbivore," he replied with his eyes closed. I frowned, seeing his logic. "And don't think about sneaking off," his eyes snapped open, meeting mine, "I wake up at the sound of a leaf hitting the ground." After that delightful warning, he went back to a somewhat blissful state (well, as blissful as Hibari could get). I gulped, thinking about my dilemma. I surveyed the school yard. My eyes lit up when I saw the wall somewhat near my tree. I estimated the distance between my branch and the wall. I looked down at the napping Hibari, then up at the wall again, deciding whether it was better to just face him or risk swinging straight into a wall. I sighed. At least the wall wouldn't bite me to death.

I shifted to a perching position and lowered myself to where I was hanging by arms again. Luckily I remembered the note before I began swinging. I hesitated before I dropped it, wondering whether I should risk him waking up or not. I shrugged, figuring I really didn't have anything else to lose and dropped it in his lap. He twitched. I looked up and began swinging, not even bothering to look at this point and focusing on slowly building momentum. I only looked down again when I felt something brush my one shoe-less foot. I looked down to see Hibari, bearing his own tonfa, almost within swinging distance of my foot. He was preparing to try again. Knowing I was limited on time and if he could get a hold of my foot I was going down, I performed one last swing, and let go of my branch, praying to every god I knew on the way.

I feet hit the edge and my arms shot forward, giving myself the push I needed to keep from falling back into the school yard. I wavered for a moment as I stood up, and then as soon as I regained my balance, I shot off running along the wall.

And I didn't look back, knowing I had completed my task...

... in a way.

* * *

><p>Dino walked along with his men back to the hotel, feeling rather happy with the results of the test and himself. Not to mention the peaceful silence also calmed him, something he was not used to in his hectic life. Although, he did feel like he was forgetting something...<p>

"Boss, did the princess decide to stay at the Vongola's house?" Bono asked from his side. Dino froze, causing his subordinate behind him to run into him. He twitched. Dino had forgotten his sister. He had thought that she had followed him and Tsuna earlier and had just sat back and observed like she did sometimes, so he hadn't given a thought to her. He rubbed his temples, thinking (knowing) that Reborn had something to do with this somehow. His men crowded around him, worried.

"Boss? Are you ok?" Romario sighed, recognizing the look on his boss's face.

"You forgot the princess, didn't you?" Instead of answering, Dino turned around, deciding to go straight back to Tsuna's house to question his former demon tutor and find his little sister. Turns out he didn't have to go far.

"Dino, catch!" He looked up to see his sister flying towards, leaving him just enough time to hold out his arms to catch her, the force pushing him back to land on his butt. He blinked at his sister. She blinked back.

"... what are you doing?"

"I'm mastering the art of sky diving." she replied with a serious expression, then pushed herself roughly off of her brother. An annoyed look crossed her features. "What does it look like? I jumped!" He rose and grabbed her chin. She tried to push him off, but he tightened his grip, causing her to wince.

"What happened to you?" he asked, his eyes narrowing at her injuries. She was covered with small scratched and bruises, and there was a nasty mark on her chin. She pushed him off.

"It's nothing. Don't ask," she reassured him and began walking off towards the hotel. Some the men started following her, now knowing that she was safe. Dino frowned and briskly walked after her and grabbed her shoulder, turning her around.

"What happened, Cloud?" He was almost glaring at her.

"Seriously, Dino," she repeated, giving him an extremely tired look. "Don't ask." Feeling a bit sorry for her, he decided to drop the subject, but mentally noted to pick it up later. He walked ahead of her, leading the way again. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hung off of him. "I'm tired..." she whined, returning to an attitude he was used too. "Carry me, Dino." He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"...Fine." He picked her up and piggyback her back to the hotel.

He could never refuse his cute little sister.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**This chapter is pretty cannon, but that's because it just started. Cloud will be making changes in the story, just because of her presence, and even bigger ripples because of her actions. Of course, she doesn't know this yet~**

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS, FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS, DOLLS. REMEMBER, REVIEWS ARE LOVE!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Again, nothing added. Go younger me for getting better. **


	14. Christmas Omake

**Chapter 14: Christmas Omake**

**Disclaimer****: I no own KHR, however I do have to take credit for Cloud and her actions *sigh***

**NOTE: This is an _ omake _****so Cloud knows and has somewhat of a relationship with all the characters shown. Of course, this does not follow the plot at all and all that shit. Cloud is also 15-16 in this. If this were to take place at some time, it would be after the end of the series where everybody is cool with one another. That is all. **

**Enjoy the Christmas Chapter, Merry Christmas to you all, and a happy New Year!**

* * *

><p><em>"It's beginning to look a lot like, Kris Kringle Time! Everywhere you know I go~"<em>

"Princess, why are you singing in English?" I look down to see Romario, clad in a Santa hat and holding a wreath. I shrugged.

"Because it's an English song." He shook his head, chuckling.

"What are you doing up there anyway?" He eyed me suspiciously from atop the ladder. I finished tying my knot and hopped down the ladder, a small fish wire string in hand.

"You see, my dear brother's baby sitter," he snorted at his title, "I have tasked myself with a mission this Christmas."

"And does this 'mission' have anything to do with your infamous harem, princess." I grinned at him.

"Oh, it has everything to do with my harem. I present to you my fool proof plan," I threw my hands up and tugged on the string, which dropped down one of the many mistletoe I have hidden in various places across the mansion.

"It's beautiful, princess," he commented, a bit sarcastically. I ignored his comment and continued.

"You see, Romario, I have come to realize that all the members of my harem will be at one place, at one time. Not to mention, it's Christmas, so using the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe to my advantage, I have set up secret mistletoe all throughout the mansion, so that I can go around during the party and receive a kiss from each of my harem members. I even have a backup mistletoe in my pocket in case I find them in a place where I haven't put one." I grinned, rather proud of my plan.

"What if they refuse to give you a kiss?" He asked the logical question. I waved him off.

"I'm pretty sure the only ones I'll have problems with are Squalo and Hibari, and it's not like I'm asking for a kiss on the lips or anything; just a peck on the cheek or something. I'm not very picky." I shook my head, the bells attached to the antlers I was wearing jingling. "Oh, and don't tell Dino about this. He'll try to stop me."

"I'll try to stop what?" Dino asked, walking into the room with Ivan and Bono, also adorned in Santa hats.

"The princess's plan to kiss all of her harem members by placing them under one of the many mistletoe she has planted throughout the mansion," Romario answered immediately.

"What did I just say about not telling him!" I hissed, clearly miffed. Dino frowned and turned to me.

"Cloud, you know I'm not going to let you go through with this," he crossed his arms and looked down at me. He blinked, noticing my outfit.

"Are you wearing leggings under shorts?" I glanced down at my red and green striped covered legs.

"It's called fashion, Dino. At least I dressed festive, unlike you."

"Hey, I'm wearing a Christmas sweater," he motioned to his front. I looked it over.

"Yeah, I guess that it's a good ugly Christmas Sweater." He stared at me, offended.

"...this isn't supposed to be an ugly Christmas sweater." I blinked.

"Oh." We stared at each other, not moving. A moment passed. "Escape!" I cried and ran off, barreling past Dino. He spun around and ran after me.

"Cloud, I'm not going to let you go through with this!" The three members of the Chiavarone family who were left in the room sighed in union.

This was going to be one hectic Christmas party.

* * *

><p>"Tsuna!"<p>

"Ah, Cloud!" He welcomed me with open arms and we hugged.

"Long time no see, Tuna-fish," I looked up at him slightly, teasing him. He laughed and released me. I leaned out to look at the two behind him.

"Hayota," I greeted Gokudera. He clicked his tongue.

"Cloud," he returned. I looked down.

"Merry Christmas, Demon Tutor."

"Merry Christmas, Cloud." Reborn returned the greeting.

"You know you guys are early, right?" I informed them, putting one hand on my hip. Tsuna sighed.

"Reborn wanted me to be early..."he relented, almost whined, "and Gokudera just kind of followed."

"I'll follow the tenth anywhere!" said right-hand-man confirmed enthusiastically.

"Yeah, Okay." I nodded. I froze, hearing something approach from down the hallway. "Gotta run." I shot off again, just as soon as Dino entered.

"Tsuna!" He burst in, wildly looking around. "Yamamoto's not with you, is he?"

"No, he's coming later," Tsuna stammered, not fully knowing what's going on, "Cloud ju-"

"Cloud?!" Dino's head shot up, from where he had been leaning on his knees earlier to catch his breath. "Where is she? I've got to stop her plan!"

"Eh? What plan?" Dino shook his head and prepared to run off again.

"No time to explain, I've got to fi-" Reborn kicked him in the head, knocking the don down on the floor.

"Don't you dare ignore me," He said, rubbing his foot into his former students head. Tsuna and Gokudera gaped, still in front of the door. Dino groaned from underneath the demon tutor.

"This is madness..." Tsuna muttered in disbelief.

"No, Tsuna," Reborn corrected. "This is Christmas."

* * *

><p>"Yama-moto~!" I dragged out his name and latched onto his arm as usual. He laughed and looked down at me, patting my head. I had managed to avoid Dino as the guest were trickling in, but I was positive that he hadn't given up on his mission to stop my mission. Oh well. Not like he could stop me anyway. But just to be safe, I should go through with my plan ASAP.<p>

"Hello, Cloud-chan!" Kyoko greeted me, walking up along with Haru, Ipin, Fuuta and Lambo.

"Yo," I greeted them, releasing Yamamoto and hugging them.

"Cloud-chan, we haven't seen you in forever!" Haru whined, holding my shoulders, "We need to have another girl's day out!" Kyoko nodded vigorously in agreement beside her. I laughed at their enthusiasm.

"Of, course guys," I calmed them, "But right now I'm in the middle of something." I turned back to Yamamoto.

"You know about mistletoe, right?" I asked him. He scratched his chin, smiling as always.

"If you're under one with a girl you gotta kiss them, right?" I nodded, grinning almost maniacally, and pulled the fishing wire on the wall, dropping the mistletoe that was hidden. He blinked up at it, surprised. He looked back at me. I leaned forwards, smiling and batting my eyelashes.

"You know the rules~" I sang. He laughed and leaned down, planting a small kiss on my cheek. Of course, this happened as soon as Dino was running by. His eyes widened dramatically.

"Cloud!" I patted Yamamoto on the cheek.

"Thanks, Yamamoto! Love ya'!" I ran off before Dino could grab me, jumped over the railing and ran past Shoechi and Spanner almost knocking them over. I didn't look back, knowing that Dino would be after me.

Off to the next target either way.

* * *

><p>"Bel! Catch!" He held out his arms and easily caught me, despite the short notice.<p>

"Ushishsi, I think you just fell for me, princess." I snorted.

"Um, I believe I was jumping, not falling," I corrected him. "Oh, and since I'm pressed for time..." I dug out the mistletoe in my pocket, held it up, kissed Bel on the cheek and jumped out of his arms, running off just as Dino fell off the stairs, landing on a very unlucky Tsuna, who just happened to be walking by.

"Ow... dammit, Cloud." He mumbled as he rolled off the younger don.

"Dino..." Tsuna managed to wheeze out as he regained his voice. "Just what is going on?"

"Cloud is going around trying to kiss all of her harem members," Dino sighed, rubbing his temples. "I'm trying to stop her, but It's not really working," he explained, rubbing the back of his head pathetically.

"Then why don't you try to be smart about it?"

"Reborn!" The two dons exclaimed in union.

"Cloud's a smart girl," Reborn explained, hopping down from the railing. "So to catch her, you have to be smart too." He presented a small, wrapped present to Dino.

"Merry Christmas, Dino." Dino took the gift hesitantly and opened it. Inside was a ribbon necklace with a bell on it and a small monitoring device. Dino looked back up at Reborn.

"...how is this supposed to help me?"

"That necklace is a tracking device, and that other thing monitors and shows where it goes," the tutor explained.

"And how am I supposed to put this thing on Cloud?" Dino asked. Reborn shrugged.

"Figure it out yourself. Tsuna will help you."

"What?! Why am I helping?"

"Allied family help each other in times of need," the baby said, as if that applied to this situation.

"I doubt this is really a time of need!"

"Come on Tsuna!" Dino grabbed his worn brother's arm and dragged him off. "We have to find somebody to give this to Cloud."

"Why me...?"

* * *

><p>Squalo's kiss was quick, since A) I didn't have time to waste and B) I needed to get in and out quick so I wasn't maimed. I ran up to him, mistletoe in hand.<p>

"Surprise mistletoe attack!" I jumped up and pecked him on the cheek. He froze from shock as I ran off.

"VOOOI! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" He waved his arms around wildely. Beside him, Xanxus downed another glass of wine, his eye twitching at the volume. After refilling his wine glass, he threw the now empty bottle at the loud man.

"Quiet, trash." Squalo scowled and turned away just when Dino and Tsuna ran by.

"Have you guys seen Cloud?"

"Hell yeah I have! The brat just ran by, kissed me and left!" Squalo screeched, but at a lower volume than before, thanks to his boss. Dino sighed.

"She got you too, huh? We're trying to stop her-

"We?" Tsuna asked, still not wanting to be involved

"-and we need somebody she trusts to give her this, so she'll wear it." He held up the necklace. "It's a tracking device, so we can get to her before she can get to any of the other members of her harem."

"Well then who's left?" Squalo asked, irritated. He had forgotten that he was in the brat's harem.

"I think it's Hibari, Byakuran, and Basil. I don't think we have to worry about Hibari much, though..." Dino trailed off, bad memories of the violent prefect resurfacing. "Right now, we just need someone to make her put this on." He held it up only for it to be snatched away by the Varia boss. They all stared at him as he walked off.

"I'll make sure she gets it, scum," He assured them and lumbered off. Tsuna sweat dropped, not knowing whether this was a good idea or a bad one. Cloud and Xanxus had a weird relationship after all.

* * *

><p>I was in the kitchen 'refueling' when Xanxus walked in.<p>

"The wine's over there. I made sure we had your favorite, too," I said through mouthfuls of lemon heads, noticing he was looking around blankly. He walked over to the cabinet and opened it, a small smirk appearing on is face as he grabbed a bottle. He leaned against the counter next to where I was sitting and opened it. After a few swigs, he reached in his pocket and handed me a necklace.

"Merry Christmas, brat." I took it and examined it. I put it up to my ear to hear a beeping sound.

"It's a tracking device, right?" He nodded, taking another swig. "Well," I jumped off the counter and began to make my way out. "Thanks for giving it me. Merry Christmas." I thanked him, knowing he wouldn't go back to Dino and report, and knowing Dino wouldn't go to him and ask him if it worked. Knowing Dino, he would just assume I had it once it started moving around a lot. In a way, Xanxus was helping me. I shrugged it off.

We had a weird relationship after all.

* * *

><p>I didn't even need to look for Byakuran. He ended up finding me.<p>

"Cloud-chan~" he cooed, picking me up from behind. He kissed me on the forehead as he sat me down.

"Well, that was easy." He cocked his head, still smiling.

"What was easy, Cloud-chan?" I was about to explain my plan to him when I was kicked in the shin. I doubled over, coming face to face with Bluebell, who was glaring at me. I glared back with a forced smile.

"What was that for, brat?" I hissed at her. She stuck her tongue out.

"That's for hogging Byakuran, bitch!" Byakuran, sensing the tension, chuckled nervously and moved the blue head child away from me. I secretly flipped her the bird (without Byakuran noticing of course. She returned it anyway), and continued telling Bykakuran about my plan.

"Ah, so that's why I haven't seen you," he said, nodding in understanding.

"Oh, also..." I gave him my best puppy dog eyes. "Since I'm one of your favorite people," Bluebell scoffed at this, "would you be willing to do me a favor?"

* * *

><p>I happily skipped throughout the mansion. Now, with Dino off my back for a while, I could enjoy this. I nearly glomped Basil when I saw him talking to Yuni and Gamma.<p>

"Hello, Cloud," Yuni greeted me sweetly. Gamma simply nodded my way. After I returned the greeting, I turned to Basil, who I was still attached to.

"Hello, Princess," he greeted, a bit awkward since I was, well, attached to him.

"Hey, Basil," I grinned at him and pulled a string on the wall, dropping the mistletoe. Yuni giggled and Gamma nearly face palmed. I released Basil and pointed up at the decoration.

"You see Basil, whenever you're caught under the mistletoe with a girl, you have to-"

"You don't have to," Gamma muttered. I stomped on his foot, causing him to wince and shut up. I went on.

"It is mandatory to kiss the girl," I finished the explanation, leaning forwards and tapping a finger on my cheek. Basil blinked.

"Well, if it's mandatory, Princess." He pecked me awkwardly on the cheek. I cheered, hugged him, hugged Yuni, glared at Gamma for almost ruining it and skipped off. They all stared as I left, some in amusement, others in bewilderment.

"She's fun," Yuni commented, smiling.

"She's weird," Gamma decided.

* * *

><p>I leaned on a wall, taking a break and mentally going through my list of members. Looks like I only have Kyoya left. I frowned, trying to think of a nonviolent way to do this.<p>

"Kufufuf, what ridiculous plan have you come up with this time, little Chivarone?" I rolled my eyes and turned my head, almost running into Mukuro's chest. I looked up with a bored expression. He smirked down at me.

"...what do you want?" He chuckled and leaned against the wall, his arms crossed.

"I heard you were going around kissing your harem members using mistletoe," he purred. I scoffed.

"I'm not putting my lips anywhere near your face," I bluntly told him, "and besides, you're only technically in my harem. You just weaseled your way in, so I don't really consider you worthy of it, really." He rolled his strange eyes.

"Like I came here for that, brat." He nearly spat at me. "I came to see your attempt to kiss the skylark. I'm hoping that it will be interesting and will be embarrassing for him if you actually succeed. In fact, I'm surprised he even came to this party." I shrugged.

"All the major characters are here."

"What?" I waved him off.

"Just breaking the fourth wall."

"Ah." He nodded, understanding. "So," he got back to the subject, "what's your plan, little Chiavarone?" I thought hard, stroking my chin. I shrugged.

"I'll just go in for a straightforward attack." He frowned.

"I'm a little disappointed, actually," the illusionist admitted. I began walking off to find Hibari.

"Well I don't really care about what you think." He snorted as I rounded the corner. He was about to follow when I ran back. He raised an eyebrow in question, but was answered when the prefect stormed around the corner after me, also going as fast as she can.

"Not working! Not working! Not working!" I scrambled behind Mukuro and pushed him forward, accidentally. My eyes widened as Kyoya tried to stop, but was going too fast and Mukuro couldn't stop from falling over in time.

I covered my mouth in shock as their lips touched and they fell on top of each other. There was a moment of silence. I was the only witness to this event, since the rest of the hallway was empty. Finally I spoke.

"It's 1869…" I muttered, still trying to process what just happened. It seemed that reality finally caught up to the two, and they pushed off of each other, going to the opposite walls, wiping their mouths and gagging. I frowned, realizing something.

"Now I can't kiss Kyoya!" I whined, clutching my head. "'cause if I kiss Kyoya anytime soon, It will be like I'm kissing Mukuro!" They both glared at me with so much intensity that I backed up.

"This is your fault," Mukuro hissed. I raised my arms in defense as those rose, their weapons drawn and stalked towards me.

"Come on guys," I said nervously, "You can't really blame me for this..." I felt along the wall desperately. I shouted in victory in my head when I found it. "I'll clear this all up... I'll just... escape!" I pulled the lever, which opened one of the few secret doors throughout the mansion (it took me forever to convince Dino to install them. Totally worth it). I dove in and it slid back into place right as the two lunged at me, finally working together for one cause.

It's just too bad that the cause was to kill me.

* * *

><p>"Dino..." Tsuna chattered, pulling his coat tighter as they trudged through the snow. "W-what are we doing out here?" In front of him, Dino was barely standing. Tsuna was convinced that his older brother had gone insane sometime throughout this wild goose chase for his sister. He was so caught up with stopping his sister that he hadn't even eaten all day.<p>

"The tracker said t-that she's out here…" Dino sputtered, scouring the trees. A couple of hours ago the little spot on the screen had gone haywire, moving all over the mansion. Then it just recently went outside. So naturally, they followed it, as they had been doing all night. Tsuna, however noticed that they haven't seen head or tail of Cloud throughout this whole 'adventure'.

"Why w-would she be out here of all places?" Dino was about to answer when he saw something in a tree. There was the bell necklace, hanging on a branch with a 'Merry Christmas' note attached to it. Dino fell to his knees in disbelief.

"S-she wasn't even wearing it..."

"YOU JUST NOW THOUGHT THAT WAS A POSSIBILITY?!"

Up on the roof, Byakuran watched them in amusement, Kikyo sitting beside him.

"You're such a cruel person, Byakuran-sama," Kikyo noted, he too looking down at the two. Tsuna was now trying to drag a delusional Dino back into the mansion. Byakuran chuckled and shrugged.

"What can I say? Cloud-chan asked me to keep him busy for a while." They looked back down to see Tsuna still trying to drag a now sobbing Dino.

"She said to keep him busy, not to break his mind, Byakuran-sama..."

* * *

><p>"... in the end, Dino got his sanity back and the beautiful and wonderful girl ended up kissing all the members of her harem... excluding one or two. She also made it to the end of the night with as little injuries as possible, thus having a very merry Christmas. The end." I looked down at the children in front of me. We were sitting in front of a warm and roaring fire, me in a comfy, big chair and the kids on the floor. Fuuta looked confused.<p>

"But, Onee-san, you have a broken arm," he pointed out.

_"And you have a black eye,_" Ipin informed me. Lambo looked up from picking his nose.

"HAHAH! You're all beat up looking!" My eye twitched.

"In the end, I had a merry Christmas," I repeated.

"Bu-"

**"In the end I had a Merry Chritsmas."** I repeated firmly, ending the discussion. The all nodded quickly. I smiled.

"Now who's ready to ruin all the hard work someone put in, and go eat the gingerbread house in the kitchen?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I actually didn't plan on the Mukuro, Hibari kiss thing at the end. I had planned for Cloud to actually kiss Hibari, but then Mukuro popped up and it just kind of went from there. Anyway, MERRY CHRISTMAS PEEPS! YOU GUYS ARE ALL DOLLS FOR KEEPING UP WITH THIS FOR SO LONG! **

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR ALL THE FAVORITE, REVIEWS AND FOLLOWS ALL YOU LOVELIES.**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Okay, Imma stop leaving these notes unless I changed something major, or added in something major. **


	15. All Smiles

**Chapter 15: All smiles**

**Note: Yeah, I'm going to stop putting ages now since we're going by years now. All you need to know is that Cloud is 13 at the moment, until June where she will be 14.**

**Disclaimer****: I no own KHR or Garfield, but I wished I own Yamamoto. He's just plain adorbs.**

* * *

><p><strong>"We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do."<strong>

**-Mother Teresa**

* * *

><p>"Ah! I missed Tsuna in Dying Will mode?!" I complained, falling back on the bed in exasperation. Dino laughed at me, and then grew a bit more serious.<p>

"Well, it's not like your adventure was any less exciting with this Hibari guy." Dino reminded me, bringing up the story he got (forced) me to tell him earlier that night. We had been engaged in sort of a brother-sister talk time on the bed of my hotel room. His statement reminded me of something I forgot.

"Gah! I forgot to ask him to be in my harem!" I rolled over, clutching my head, scolding myself for forgetting. Dino's expression deadpanned.

"You want to ask the bloodthirsty kid whose first instinct was to attack to be in your harem?" I nodded and sniffed.

"I focus more on looks than attitude," I explained.

"Isn't that shallow, Cloud?" I nodded.

"Very." I curled in up a ball, still sad that I forgot to ask his holy-hottness. Dino sighed and shook his head, still against the very idea of his little sister having a harem.

* * *

><p>"Cloud." Reborn jumped on my shoulder as we were walking towards a clearing in the woods so Dino could help train Tsuna. "You fought Hibari, right?" I glared at the kid.<p>

"You wanted me to fight him, didn't you?" I hissed at him, the injury on my chin throbbing as a reminder of the fight.

"Of course. He's a possible candidate for Tsuna's family. I knew he was already a good fighter, but I wanted someone's opinion who was an expert on hand to hand combat." I blushed, not aware of the fact that Reborn held me in such high regards. I thought over my fight with Hibari in detail. Reborn waited patiently on my shoulder.

"He relies way too much on brute strength," I informed the tutor after a while, "and he rushes into battle without thinking. He's not that good against fluid styles like mine, because he just focuses on attacking and not defending. His swings are wide and easy to get under and overall, he's just aggressive." I actually didn't really notice his flaws before, but now that I think about it, if it had been a serious fight and I actually wanted to win or even kill him, I could have. I could have used the roof to an advantage, lead him to the edge of the fence, grab him when he swung too wide and flipped him over the edge. Wow. Hibari actually isn't perfect. Well, this is kind of news to me. "But, he has a lot of potential," I admitted, "If the right person trained him, he could soar." Reborn nodded, deep in thought. He jumped off my shoulder as we reached the clearing.

"Thank you, Cloud. You've made a remarkable guinea pig." I frowned, not liking the feeling of being used. Feeling pouty again, I walked over to Dino.

"We've traveled all the way to Japan to see my cute little brother, so I thought I could pass down my whip-handling skills to you." I scrunched my nose and sat down on the grass.

"That sounds a little kinky, bro." He kicked me lightly, silently telling me to shut up. I did as I was told and watched. For now. Dino handed Tsuna his old whip and then, bringing out a water bottle from his jacket, poured water on Enzo.

"Here, try it. It's fun." I snorted when he said 'fun', but kept quiet. "First you put water on Enzo, the sponge snapping turtle." He put his pet on the ground.

"But if you put water on Enzo..." Tsuna trailed off, watching with wide eyes.

"His size and aggressiveness varies depending on the amount of water you pour on him. He will be your sparring partner." The now cat-size turtle let out a fearsome roar.

"WHAAAAT?" Hah, guess who?

"Don't worry, without any water, he won't grow any larger. When things get dangerous, my family will come and help you." I tilted my head.

"Wasn't it the point not to make things dangerous?" I was ignored, naturally. I pouted more. Enzo scrambled towards Tsuna, who naturally freaked out.

"He's pretty fast!" Tsuna raised the whip and closed his eyes. "HIEEEK! GO AWAY!" I was actually surprised when he managed to fling Enzo. Maybe he's not as unlucky as I originally thought.

"Hey! You have good instincts," Dino complimented.

"Where did he fall?"

"That's a well."

"Well...?"

Well, I was wrong.

"Crap, Tsuna! Get away from there!" Right after my brother yelled, Enzo burst from the ground, about the size of a house. Dino picked me up from the ground and started running after he flung me over his shoulder. I didn't mind. It's not like I wanted to run anyway. The only bad thing about this transportation is that I got front row seats to see Tsuna get nearly trampled by the ginormous turtle, and then thrown across the clearing.

"Hey, Bro," I got Dino's attention. "I'm pretty sure that Tsuna needs a hospital."

* * *

><p>I woke up the next in my hotel room, rolled out of bed, got presentable (actually trying a bit today for once) and found a note from Dino saying that they had already gone to visit Tsuna at the hospital. Me being me, I noticed that he didn't say whether I could go anywhere or not, so technically, I could not get in trouble if I went out. I convinced myself that this was logical as I made my way out of the hotel. I asked a nice old woman for directions to the hospital, hoping to visit Tsuna, just to be a nice person (that, and I really had nothing better to do).<p>

"Hey, you were at Tsuna's house the other day, right?" I turned towards the voice, my heart fluttering. A smiled instantly appeared on my face. Yamamoto Takeshi walked towards me, holding a rather large sushi boat. I nodded, mentally trying to calm the fangirl inside of me.

"I'm Cloud, Dino's sister." I introduced myself, slightly bowing.

"Ah, so you're that guy's sister. I'm Yamamoto Takeshi, Tsuna's friend," He replied with a bright smile (it took all of my will power not to squeal and glomp him).

"Where are you headed?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"To visit Tsuna in the hospital." I acted surprised.

"Ah! Me too. I kind of feel obliged to since my brother was technically the reason he's in there in the first place," I sighed, and started walking. Yamamoto fell into step beside me. He was unsurprisingly easy to talk to, with his easy going attitude and what not. Although there was one question that was burning in my head the whole time. I couldn't help it. I asked him when we reached the hospital doors.

"Hey, Yama-moto," I sang his name out, "Will you be in my harem." He laughed good-naturedly.

"Haha, sure, Cloud!" his laughed dwindled off and he cocked his head, a confused look on his face. "But what's a harem?" I quickly waved it off.

"Oh, you don't have to know what it is to be in it. Not important." He shrugged and accepted my excuse. I mentally cheered on the inside as we entered the hospital. I let Yamamoto do all the talking and just followed him up to Tsuna's hospital room.

"You seem well," Yamamoto greeted as he opened the door. "We came by for a visit."

"Yamamoto!? Wait, we?" I heard Tsuna exclaim. I peeked around Yamamoto.

"Yo, Tuna-fish!"

"Cloud?!" I chuckled and tilted my head. Does he really need to yell out someone's name every time they enter a room?

"Dad told me to bring this," Yamamoto presented the magnificent sushi boat. Tsuna gaped at it.

"Isn't... this really expensive..?"

"Don't worried about it. Dad likes to give people things." I smiled, sitting back and watching the exchange. Tsuna seemed genuinely happy. I guess Yamamoto was his most normal friend. I was about to approach Tsuna and see how he was doing but someone else came in before I could.

"Young Vongola is hurt? How terrible..." I looked over to the door, to see a charming looking guy. My eyes narrowed, somewhat recognizing him.

"Adult Lambo?" Oh. That's who that is. Thank goodness for Tsuna's introductions. Actually, he was kind of cute. He pushed off the door and sauntered over to Tsuna. "I went back ten years so suddenly that I didn't have time to prepare anything."

"Oh, it's okay. You don't have to do that," Tsuna said, almost nervously. Yamamoto just kind of stood off to the side with me, not really knowing what else to do.

"Ah! I'll give you this." He pulled a clothed figure out of his pocket. "Every month my family gives awards for excellence. This," he revealed the gold toilet trophy, "is the 'good job on cleaning the bathroom' award." Lambo said with pride. Tsuna looked at it in horror.

"10TH!" I winced again. We've got to get that boy a mute button. We all turned towards the door, shocked to see a bloodied and limping Gokudera trying to pull himself in. "Are you okay, 10th!?"

"Ask yourself that question first!" Tsuna yelled back at him.

"I'm glad... you're fine... I was in a hurry so I got run over a couple of times."

"Aw, and you survived?" I said, without thinking. His head snapped to me, already glaring.

"You're idiotic brother did this to tenth!" He tried to storm over, but was too injured. He turned back to Tsuna. "Oh… this… is a gift." He pulled out blood red, trampled look roses. "I'm sorry. They were white roses earlier, but..."

"I think you should go see a doctor, Gokudera-kun!"

"I'm fine. This is nothing," he chirped back, clearly not fine. Oh, right, I brought something too.

"Here, Tsuna," I dropped a bag of chocolates in his lap, "Just a little apology for my brother." He smiled down at his gifts, probably thinking of how glad he was to have such great friends that care enough to bring his gifts. I didn't have the heart to tell him my gift was from the snack fridge in the hotel room and that I just grabbed it as a last minute thing as I left. We all glanced at the door, hearing a commotion on the other side. Soon, the door caved in, revealing a small group of nurses, male and female on the floor.

"THIS WON'T DO AT ALL SAWADA-SAN!" First, she ushered the nurses out and then turned to us. "I'm sorry but you all must leave immediately." We did as we were told and made our way out of the room quickly, not wanting to anger her anymore. Yamamoto, Lambo and I walked out together (Gokudera was carted away by some nurses, who seemed to notice his injuries).

"It's good to see you so young again, Neesan," Lambo turned to me, smiling. I blinked.

"Yeah… it's good to see you so… old?" I tried. He laughed.

"You just met us, right?" I nodded.

"Ah, then I haven't latched onto you yet," he mused, walking out the door. I wanted to ask him what he meant by 'latched' on, but it seemed the five minutes were up. With a 'poof' and a cloud of smoke, the handsome dude was replaced with a snot nose brat. Losing interest, I turned to Yamamoto, who seemed oblivious to what just happened. My stomach growled. I frowned, rubbing it, remembering that I didn't really have any breakfast this morning. Yamamoto (the angel) seemed to notice this.

"Yo, Cloud, you wanna go to my dad's sushi bar? It's not too far from here," he pointed back. I thought back to Dino, wondering if he would be mad if I wasn't back to the hotel soon. I shrugged. Oh well. I smiled at Yamamoto and latched onto his arm.

"Lead the way!"

* * *

><p>"Hey, old man, I'm back!" Yamamoto yelled as we entered the sushi bar. I peeked around him to see a middles-age man, definitely related to Yamamoto behind the counter, with a rather large knife, cutting a fish.<p>

"Welcome back," He greeted. He spotted me and smiled widely. "Oh! I didn't know you were bringing a girl home! You should have told me." Yamamoto blushed lightly and rubbed the back of his head.

"It's not like that, dad! Cloud's just a friend."

"Actually, we only just became friends today," I explained further, but thinking how nice it would be to date someone like Yamamoto.

"I brought her here because she was hungry," Yamamoto said, lightly pushing me to the bar. I slid into one of the seats.

"I'm Cloud Chiavarone," I introduced myself, deciding it would be the polite thing to do. I blinked. "I mean, Chiavarone Cloud." I corrected, remembering to say my last name first. They both laughed.

"Yamamoto Tsuyoshi," He replied. "Now what do you want?" I fidgeted.

"Truthfully I don't really know; I've only had sushi once before and somebody else ordered for me..." I trailed off scratching my chin.

"Well, I can just give you a few different things and see which ones you like," he said, waving the knife in the air as he talked. He paused and frowned when I didn't react. He leaned in and looked me in the eyes. He let out a bark of laughter.

"Hah! Normally people get nervous when I start waving the knife around, but you didn't blink at all! You picked out a tough one, son," He turned to Yamamoto, who smiled back. I shrugged and leaned on the bar, becoming more comfortable as each moment passed.

"I'm pretty blasé about everything," I admitted, leaving out the fact that my best friend was a knife expert, and would twirl knives in his hands without even noticing half the time. He began preparing different kinds of Sushi as he continued talked, his knife moving at incredible speed and accuracy.

"So where're you from?" He asked. "You're definitely foreign."

"I'm from Italy. I'm here with my older brother who came here for..." I trailed off, looking for the right word. "…business." He nodded in confirmation.

"She's friends with Tsuna too," Yamamoto informed his dad from my side.

"Oh, that kid that had to work for me to pay off his debt?" Yamamoto nodded. Tsuyoshi finished up behind the counter. "Enjoy!" He set a plate in front of me, filled with different types of sushi. I eyed it curiously and prepared my chopsticks. They watched intently as I took a bite. Silence.

"It's great!" I assured them, throwing them a thumbs up. They cheered.

"Another satisfied customer," Tsuyoshi said, more to himself as he cleaned his station.

"I'll be sure to tell my friend about this place if he ever comes to Japan," I said, thinking of Bel again. "He loves sushi." Yamamoto laughed.

"The more the merrier," he chanted, and stole some sushi from my plate. I bumped his shoulder lightly, scolding him. He smirked back at me. I glanced around noticing that there weren't any other customers.

"Surely you'd have more customers than this," I commented. He laughed.

"Actually, we're closed at the moment."

"Oh!" I suddenly became a bit flustered, "sorry for disturbing you." He waved me off.

"It's fine! Any friend of my son is allowed any time!" I smiled. Then I thought back to Dino.

"Can I take some of this to go?" I asked, pointing at the rest of my plate. "I want to take some for my brother." And maybe to use as a sacrifice to appease him, but I didn't say that out loud.

"Of course. Yamamoto, make yourself useful and get her a box," he shooed his son off to the back. Meanwhile, I was getting my wallet out.

"So how much is i-"

"It's on the house," he said before I finished.

"Bu-"

"You're Yamamoto's friend, so it's fine," he waved me off again, leaving no room for argument.

"Here you go, Cloud," Yamamoto set the small box in front of me. I thanked him and scooped the remainder of my meal into the box.

"It was nice meeting you, but I better get going before my brother starts worrying." I said, hopping off my seat. I turned to Yamamoto and patted him on the shoulder, but had to reach up (darn my shortness). "Thanks for inviting me, Yama-moto~" then I turned back to his dad. "And thanks for the great sushi, I'll be sure to come back and actually pay next time." He laughed and waved as we excited. I looked up at Yamamoto. "You don't have to walk me back, you know."

"I can't just let a girl walk all the way back on her own when it's getting dark," he said, placing his hands behind his head as we walked.

"Oh, trust me," I said, swinging my arms and folding them behind my back, "I can definitely take care of myself."

"Can you fight like Dino-san?" I nodded.

"Yep."

"Cool! What do you fight with?" He leaned down, interested in the topic.

"Just my hands. I'm a martial artist."

"Oh, that's still cool! So you must be really athletic. Do play any sports?"

"Oh, no. Tsuna warned me about this," I stopped walking and turned to face him. We were a few blocks away from the hotel. "I am not about to start talking to you about baseball; we'd be here forever." He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head again.

"I guess you're right, Cloud."

"Anyway, this is far enough. You can go back now, I'll be good from here," I gave him a thumbs up. He still didn't look convinced.

"You, sure?"

"Yes," I reassured him, trying to turn him around physically and push him back. "You can go back, Yamamoto. I had a lot of fun hanging out with you! Ciao!" I walked the other way, in a light mood, waving him off.

I made a note to spend more time with the baseball player.

* * *

><p>"I come bearing sushi!" I announced as a peace offering as I entered Dino's room. Dino looked up from the TV and Romario from his book.<p>

"Oh, Cloud," Dino greeted smiling, "did you order room service or something?"

"I didn't know they had sushi here." Romario said, hand on chin. I blinked at them.

"Where exactly do you think I've been all day?" Dino looked confused.

"You've been in your room... right?" I shook my head.

"No," I dragged the word out, "I went out. Your note didn't say I couldn't, so I did." I sat on the bed and threw him the box sushi. "Oh, and I also gained a new harem member." I said proudly. Dino sighed.

"What am I going to do with you Cloud?"

"Love me, feed me, never leave me," I quoted, falling back on the bed, my tummy full of sushi.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I really like writing Yamamoto. Truthfully I didn't have that planned, but then Yamamoto just kind of dragged Cloud off to eat sushi. Oh well, more of a sweet chapter and a bit of a shorter chapter.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES, DOLLS!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Is it bad that I have to find happy quotes to go along with happy chapters because I have too many ansty ones that fit with Cloud? That says a lot about the future of this story, though. **


	16. Simple Complications

**Chapter 16: Simple Complications**

**Disclaimer****: I don't own KHR**

* * *

><p><strong>"The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life."<strong>

**-Richard Bach**

* * *

><p>"Hey, Cloud you wanna come?" I looked at the upside down image of my brother who was blocking the upside down image of the TV.<p>

"Where're you going?"

"Tsuna and I are going to have a heart-to-heart talk up on the mountains."

"No thanks," I replied, finding the activity boring. Wanting to do something else, I flipped off the bed.

"Okay, then," Dino acknowledged, beginning to walk out, "I'm going to get Yamamoto and Go-" I jumped up, suddenly finding inspiration to go.

"Changed my mind! I'm coming!"

* * *

><p>"Ugh... so cold! Why are we going to a mountain in this weather?" Gokudera crossed his arms and looked around, his irritation showing.<p>

"We don't get to see this nature like this very often though," Yamamoto commented, an attempt to lighten his friend's mood. I didn't mind the cold, actually. I was warm enough with my coat and latching on to Yamamoto's arm.

"And since when did you two get so attached?" The bomber turned his head, glaring slightly at us. Yamamoto laughed lightly and shrugged. Dino sighed, ahead of us.

"Now I know why you came..." He shook his head, deciding that it was too late to do anything now. "Anyway, as an apology for hospitalizing Tsuna last time, I thought this would be a good place to have a heart-to-heart talk. Spending a night in a place like this deepens the family's unity."

"What the heck are you talking about, you worthless bastard!" Gokudera spat, clearly not happy with the situation.

"As long as I'm next to Yamamoto, I'll go wherever!" I chirped my status, still clinging to Yamamoto's arm (he seemed content with my attachment). Per usual I was ignored.

"Where's the 10th? Is he really here?!"

"Don't worry. He's already gone ahead with Reborn. Guessing from the time, they're probably having lunch." Of course, he was wrong.

"HEEEELP!"

"10TH!" Tsuna, the poor guy, was tied to a walk under a waterfall and Reborn sat by nonchalantly sipping his drink, completely dry. With how cold it was, I actually felt sorry for Tsuna. I sighed.

"Typical Reborn." Yamamoto tilted his head beside me as Dino was nagging Reborn.

"Were they playing a game?"

"...no."

"Don't use me as your toy!" Tsuna complained as he got untangled from the rock. He shuffled over to us, shivering.

"That's true." Reborn jumped on my brother's shoulder. "Then let's play with Enzo." I blinked, one single blink mind you, and Enzo was in the demon tutor's hands.

"Ah! When did you..!?" Dino was confused by his magical Reborn powers as well. Reborn tossed the turtle into the water.

"If you throw Enzo in the river...!" It took a moment before anything happened, then an enormous Enzo, the biggest I've ever seen him, surfaced. "THAT'S HUGE!"

"What the heck is that?" Yamamoto looked up at it nervously.

"It's the spirit of the mountain!" Gokudera shouted.

"No, that's just En-" He interrupted me.

"The spirit of the mountain is angry with us! PLEASE CALM DOWN!"

"No, that's not it!" Tsuna tried to calm his friend. I looked around.

"Shouldn't we be running...?"

"Cloud's right. There's nothing we can do once he grew that big. Let's go to the other side of the bridge," Dino agreed with me. Following our advice, the group ran to the bridge. Yamamoto picked up Reborn on the way (the little bastard was completely calm in the midst of all this chaos). I remained attached to the baseball players arm.

"HIEEK, IT'S SHAKING!"

"Calm down, Tsuna," Yamamoto tried, but was panicking a bit himself.

"UWAA, I'S COMING!"

"I'll buy us some time here. You guys just go on ahead." We turned back to look at my brother, who was preparing his whip.

"Wait! You worthless whip is useless!"

"Yeah, noble sacrifice and all, Bro, but you're going to do more harm than good!" I yelled back at him.

"Stop talking nonsense." He chided back, smirking confidently. "Leave it to me!" He lashed his whip, cutting the ropes holding the bridge up. "Oh, no." The guys stared at him in horror. I sighed, already used to this. I squeaked as the bridge fell out from underneath us. Yamamoto pulled me and Reborn closer and turned, so that he would take the brunt of the fall. I heard them yelling as we fell, but all I could think of was 'I told you so'. Yamamoto let out an 'umph' when we hit the ground. I rolled off him immediately and turned to him, making sure he was okay.

"I'm fine. Seems like that the tree branches broke our fall." I smiled, relieved that the person who cushioned the fall for me was unharmed. I glanced around at the others, making sure they were uninjured too.

"Are you okay, 10th?"

"I..I'm alive," was his pathetic response. I sighed and helped the poor guy up. Heaven knows what he's been through today.

"Enzo shrank too, thanks to the sun," Reborn informed us. I stared at him blankly.

"Well thank you for that tid-bit of information, Mr. Guy-who-got-us-in-this-mess-in-the-first-place."

"If you want to blame somebody, blame Dino," Reborn said, pointing an accusing finger at my brother.

"Sorry. My hands slipped," Dino excused himself rather pathetically, pushing himself up.

"Bastard! 'My hands slipped' isn't enough!" Yamamoto held Gokudera, who was having a hissy fit, back.

"Calm down," Yamamoto tried to sooth the bomber, "Everyone's fine so it's okay."

"Sorry," Dino mumbled again, turning to me. "You alright, Cloud?" I looked up at him, not answering.

"I told you would do more harm than good," I huffed and walked to stand over by my favorite person in the group.

"We don't know if we can go home from here," Reborn pointed out.

"Now… now that you mention it, that's true.." Tsuna muttered, glancing around. "Where are we?!" Gokudera pulled out his cellphone.

"Nope. No signal."

"No way!"

"Calm down," Dino walked over to Tsuna and Gokudera. "My phone can get a signal even in the middle of a desert. It's a satellite phone." He dug in his pockets only to pull out the mangled carcass of his phone. "It's broken..." Tsuna gaped at it in horror. I sighed.

"It's fine. I have the same phone as him," I informed them Tsuna gazed at me hopefully as I dug in my coat pocket.

"Cloud... thank you!" I waved him off, pulling out my phone.

"Can't rely on him for anything..." I stared at the blank screen. "... it's dead." Tsuna's mouth fell open.

"We lost our food bag too."

"SERIOUSLY!?"

"You're just the bearer of bad news, aren't you?" I noted, looking down at Reborn.

"If we camp out here, the cold night weather will probably be the worst thing," Yamamoto informed us. I latched onto his arm again.

"We should stay close. You, know, for warmth." He laughed lightly, but was still worried about the current situation. Dino gave me a warning glance. I stuck my tongue out at him.

"If a bear comes out on a day like this," we looked down to see Reborn in full jungle mode, wearing a loin cloth. "Then it becomes a game of survival."

"YOU SEEM TO BE GETTING THE MOST FUN OUT OF THIS!" This time, it was Tsuna's turn to get held back my Yamamoto. "THIS ALL HAPPENED BECAUSE OF YOU!"

"Calm down. We'll figure something out. Let's enjoy it."

"Look." Reborn pointed, catching our attention. "It's a cave." The mood of the group lightened significantly.

"Maybe we can take shelter in here to avoid the cold," Yamamoto suggested walking us towards the entrance.

"Don't get too close to it. It could be a nest of some ferocious animals." Cue Tsuna freak out. "I'll look inside," Dino volunteered. Gokudera grabbed his shoulder, stopping him.

"Wait, I can't leave it to you. I'll go!" Dino shrugged and let him go ahead, coming to stand beside me. He put his arm on my shoulder, leaning on it.

"Oh, well."

"If anything happens, scream loud," Yamamoto advised. Gokudera flicked his lighter, producing a flame.

"Who'd do that, you moron?" He entered the cave. We waited a moment. Then we heard a scream.

"That's Gokudera-kun's scream!" Tsuna shrieked. Dino and Yamamoto pushed me behind them and took defensive stances. Reborn held his gun up, ready to shoot if necessary. Meanwhile, feeling rather safe with all of them in front of me, I stood back with my hands in my pockets, simply observing. Besides, it's not like I don't know what's in the cave anyway.

"Oh." Bianchi walked out of the cave, carting an unconscious and sick looking Gokudera.

"BIANCHI?!" And there's Tsuna's introductions, on time, as always.

"Welcome, Reborn." She abandoned he brother and glomped Reborn. After fretting over his friend for a bit, Tsuna turned back to Bianchi.

"Why is Bianchi here?!"

"I ended up here while I was collecting poisonous mushrooms three days ago," she explained simply. "It's an enjoyable place. Even when I tried to go back, I still ended up coming back here." She laughed lightly. Ignoring Tsuna's outburst, I unhooked arms with Yamamoto and approached her.

"Yo, Bianchi, It's been a few years right?" She smiled at me.

"Cloud," She hugged me, surprising me a bit, "It's been too long. I'm still grateful to you for reuniting me with Reborn." Ah. So that's why she likes me.

"M-Meeting you in a place like this..." Dino smiled at her nervously, "poison-scorpion Bianchi." She glanced at him indifferently.

"Oh, Dino, you're here too?"

"I was almost killed by the poison scorpion several times when I was still Reborn's student." He explained to Tsuna, and then turned to me.

"How do you know her?"

"She was in China and we ran into each other," I explained, leaving out the part where I accidentally set the older girl loose on him. Luckily, he seemed to except my explanation.

"By the way, what did you eat for those three days?" Yamamoto asked Bianchi. He seemed to be the only one thinking of the important questions around here.

"Poison mushrooms or...poison mushrooms," she answered, as if it were a normal thing. A feeling of shock and disbelief washed through our group. Bianchi looked back at the cave, remembering something.

"You guys can come out." A noise came out of the cave, sounding a bit like crying.

"Wh-what's that sound..?" Tsuna sputtered.

"There are others?" Yamamoto took another defensive stand in front of Tsuna and me, but relaxed when Ipin and Lambo came out.

"You guys! Why are you guys here!?" Tsuna exclaimed. "I saw you guys this morning at the house!" Suddenly a dark shape darted out of the cave and latched onto Tsuna.

"Tsuna-san!"

"Haru?" While Bianchi was explaining how they trio arrived I went over to Ipin.

"_Are you alright, mei mei_?" I bent down to her level. She nodded.

"What happened? Why are you guys here?" Tsuna asked, trying to pry the other girl off him.

"Haru found an article about a delicious cake shop up in the mountains," I translated as Ipin explained, "So the three of us decided to go together. But Lambo lied about knowing how to get there, provoked a bee's nest for fun, and we ended up here because he fell off a cliff..." I trailed off as I finished, sweat dropping.

"Everything's Lambo's fault!" Tsuna shrieked, pointing out the obvious. Yamamoto looked at me in surprise.

"You know Chinese?" I nodded.

"I spent two years training in China," I replied, picking up Ipin and holding her, "We have the same master, so we're basically sisters." He smiled and nodded, then began picking up sticks. Tsuna seemed to notice this after explaining to Haru that we were lost too.

"Yamamoto, what are you doing?"

"I'm thinking we could burn some woods. That way we have some SOS signal, get some heat, and scare away the animals." Yamamoto explained, looking back at Tsuna. Lambo seemed to notice I was holding Ipin as Tsuna gushed over Yamamoto. He ran over and clung to my leg. I looked down at him, my eye twitching. I shook my leg, but he only tightened his grip.

"What," I hissed, "are you doing?" He sniffled.

"Y-you're comforting Ipin so you h-have to comfort me too!" I blinked.

"There's absolutely no logic in that what-so-ever."

"HIEEK! FOREST FIRE!" I looked up to see that, yes, there was indeed a forest fire. I immediately grabbed the sniffling brat and backed up to where Yamamoto and Tsuna were. Hey, lack of logic or not, I wasn't going to let him get caught in a forest fire.

"The fire's spreading really fast! Let's take shelter in the cave!" Dino advised. I was about to move, but Lambo began shifting in my arms. I looked down to see grenades in his hands.

"I'll help make a fire as an apology!"

"Lambo, no-" I tried to stop him, but he already threw the grenades. Luckily, I stopped him before he could throw any more. "No more grenades!" I scolded him. He sniffled.

"O-okay, Nee-san..."

"Oh, no! We're surrounded by fire!"

"LAMBO YOU FOOL!" Still holding the kids, I stepped towards the center of the currently flame-free clearing.

"We're done for!" Tsuna shrieked.

"I don't want to die!" Haru joined him in his panic. I twitched, feeling a head ache forming. At least Lambo wasn't freaking out anymore. He seemed rather content in my arms. I looked up just in time to see Tsuna get hit with dying will bullet. I watched in amazement (and bewilderment) as Tsuna jumped out of his clothes and dashed off.

"REBORN! EXTINGUISH THE FIRE AS IF I WERE TO DIE!" Leon jumped to his aid, turning into those rod things that find water.

"DOUSING!" Tsuna shouted. I tilted my head. Is that what's it called? He followed to direction the rods were pointing. "FOUND THE WATER-WAY! ADDED BULLET!" He positioned himself to punch the ground. "MEGA TON PUNCH!" He punched the ground, and almost shattered it. A geyser of water sprouted out, producing a rain like effect.

"Wow."

"It's water."

"We're saved."

"Tsuna-san, you're so wonderful!" I shrugged, smiling and looking up.

"I guess he is good for something." Tsuna, hearing my remark and now back to normal, smiled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Thanks, Cloud..." I looked over at him, noticing his lack of Clothes.

"You might want to put something on, bro." He squeaked and scrambled for his bag, bringing out extra clothes.

"OH, NO! RUN!" We looked back at my brother. I backed up to Tsuna's group, looking up at the once again huge Enzo, even bigger than last time.

"WHAT?!"

"SPIRIT OF THE MOUNTAIN!" Deciding not to waste any more time, I began running. The others soon followed, deciding that my idea was the smartest thing to do at the moment.

"You really should take better care of your pet, Dino!" I yelled at him, running beside me. He sighed and cried out.

"I said I was sorry!"

* * *

><p>Lambo had taken a liking to me. I now knew what his future self's words meant, when he said he was going to 'latch on to me'. Of course, I didn't think he meant it literally. The good thing about Lambo clinging to me throughout this little 'adventure' is that I prevented him from throwing anymore grenades. Between me and Tsuna keeping Gokudera and Lambo in check, Yamamoto managed to start a fire safely. Another job I was tasked with, along with watching Lambo, was making sure Dino didn't cause any more problems until we were rescued. I sighed. Somehow, I have become a babysitter.<p>

"Ah, Cloud?" I turned to Tsuna. At the moment, we were all sitting peacefully around the fire, waiting for Romario to rescue us (because we all knew he would be the one that would actually do the job). "How come Dino is clumsy around you too? He's not clumsy when he's around his family, right?" I shook my head. Dino looked confused from beside me (I tried to sit by Yamamoto at first, but Dino sat in between us. Hmph).

"I don't know wha-"

"For some reason, I don't count," I explained to Tsuna, interrupting Dino as I petted Lambo's fro softly as he slept. I hate to admit it, but the brat wasn't as annoying as I thought. I looked at Haru, who was sitting beside me.

"I'm Cloud Chiavarone," I introduced myself, "We didn't get a chance to meet earlier with all the chaos." She smiled kindly at me.

"I'm Haru Miura!" She chirped happily, despite the current situation. "It's nice to meet you!" Her expression changed drastically. "But if you try to steal Tsuna-san's heart, you'll regret it." I laughed.

"Don't worry, I'm not interested in him. He's not even in my harem!" Tsuna paled.

"Y-you have a harem?" I nodded happily. Dino sighed and leaned his head on his hand beside me.

"Yep. Yamamoto is my newest member," I quipped. Yamamoto laughed and nodded, agreeing with the statement. Tsuna blanched.

"DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?" Gokudera, had a different reaction however.

"What? That baseball freak is worthy of you harem?" He stood up and pointed towards Tsuna, "That's unexceptionable! The 10th is more than worthy!" I scrunched my nose.

"He isn't my type."

"And I don't want to be in her harem, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna argued, but was ignored.

"Let the 10th in your harem!" The bomber stepped towards me, trying to be intimidating. I thoughtful stroked my chin.

"No." I blankly stared at the fuming Gokudera. He was about to start again, but Dino stopped him.

"Can we please stop trying to put Tsuna in my sister's harem?" He said, standing in between Gokudera and me. "It's bad enough that she has one in the first place." I smirked from behind him.

"You still can't stop me, bro." He gave me an exasperated look and sighed in defeat.

"I know, but it can't hurt to try." Tsuna seemed to feel his pain.

"Poor Dino-san..."

* * *

><p>"Why is this so complicated?" I whined. I make a choking sound as the ribbon around my waist was pulled tighter. "Ack! Tight, tight!"<p>

"Sorry princess, but it has to be tight," Bono apologized behind me. "And you wanted to wear it, anyway." I huffed as he began to tie another ribbon around me.

"It's not really that I wanted to wear it, it's just that Dino got it for me, asking me if I wanted to wear it. Since he got it for me, and I didn't think getting it on would be so complicated, I decided to wear it." I explained. Bono had moved onto to tying the obi at this point.

"All done, princess," He stepped back and gestured to the mirror. I looked at my reflection, turning to see every angle. I smiled, admiring the dark green pattern of the yukata.

"Good job, Bono. I didn't even know you could do this." He shrugged. I twirled one last time, then made my way out the door to meet Dino in the hallway, with Bono following. It had been a couple of days since we had been saved from being lost in the forest and before I knew it, it was three days after New Year's. Dino grinned and put his arm around my shoulder when we approached him.

"Looking good, Cloud," he chided as we began walking out. I snorted.

"I always look good." He rolled his eyes. "Anyway what are we doing? Isn't New Year's only a day for us?"

"Yeah, but Reborn asks us to compete against Tsuna's family in a Vongola-style New Year," He explained. I blinked, tilting my head.

"Are you sure we should do this? Anything that Reborn is involve with usually turns out to be dangerous." My brother sighed.

"You and I both know all too well that you can't just refuse Reborn's request."

"Oh." I nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

"And I've been thinking, Cloud," Dino started as we were nearing Tsuna's house. "You need some girl friends."

"So do you, but you don't see me saying anything." I thought about it. "I thought you were against me and the whole dating thing." He sighed, but continued.

"I meant you need some female companionship. You only hang out with guys. You need some female friends," he explained. "And besides, you're becoming a bit boyish only hanging out with guys." I stared up at him, a bit miffed.

"Boyish? Is this why you got me this yukata?" He rubbed the back of his head, caught.

"Well that was some of it. I just thought it would be fun, and I wanted my little sister to look cute on New Years." I wriggled his arm off my shoulder and crossed my arms, a little miffed that he would dare call me boyish... even if it's a little bit true. But, I believed that my cuteness made up for it.

"I have Gabriela," I reminded him curtly, out to prove him wrong.

"Gabriela? Ah, you mean the girl you met the time you messed u-"

"Yes," I interrupted before he could remind me, "That Gabriela. Wait, you guys still haven't met? I mean, we mostly email, but you two really should meet sometime."

"She's my age, isn't she? You need some friends your own age, Cloud."

I opened my mouth to retaliate, but before we could pursue the point further, but we had arrived at Tsuna's house.

"Cloud and Dino-san... and all his men?!"

"We came here to play New Year's 'Family vs.' battle in Vongola style," Dino explained to the surprised Tsuna, stepping out in front. He glanced back at the group behind Tsuna. "It's my first time seeing some of you. Nice to meet you." He acknowledged them. Haru dashed over to me and pulled me over to their group as Reborn was explaining the battle.

"Cloud-chan!" She pulled me over to stand next to another girl with short orange-ish hair and a sparkling atmosphere. I had to admit, she had a very cute face. No wonder Tsuna's in love with her. "This is Kyoko!" I snapped out of my thoughts, and bowed awkwardly.

"I'm Cloud Chiavarone and that's Dino, my brother," I gestured behind us. Kyoko bowed back.

"Nice meeting you! I'm Kyoko Sasagawa and this is my older brother, Ryohei," She chirped happily. A muscular looking white haired guy waved from behind her. I waved back. "Ah! Cloud-chan, I like your kimono!" I looked down, forgetting I was even wearing it.

"Thanks. It's my first time wearing one."

"Well, it looks good on you!" I smiled back at her, not really knowing what else to do. I'm not used to this whole chitter-chatter girl thing. I glanced behind me only to see Dino giving me a very bright smile. I managed to flip him the bird without the girl's noticing.

"Yo, Cloud!"

"Yama-moto!" I latched onto his arm in greeting. He laughed and patted me on the head.

"I see you're dressed up for New Years," He commented. I was about to respond when Tsuna started freaking out, as usual.

"THE WAY YOU SAY THAT IS REALLY ANNOYING!"

"Geez, Tsuna. You always get angry over a child's game." Yamamoto chided.

"The event feels very New-Year like. It seems fun," Haru smiled at him.

"One million dollars is such a wonderful dream…" Kyoko muttered, a dreamy look on her face. Tsuna sunk into a depressed state because of their obliviousness. I approached him and patted his shoulder.

"Don't worry, Tuna-fish. I'm on your side," I comforted him.

"T-thanks Cloud..." he muttered, leaning into me a bit for support. I shrugged.

"That what sisters are for!" My statement seemed to make him feel better. I noticed the group starting to move.

"Since we don't have room here, we'll go to a different location," Reborn announced and started walking. Dino appeared beside us.

"You coming, Cloud?" he asked when he noticed I wasn't moving. I scrunched my nose.

"I don't really want too. I wouldn't really be participating anyway if I came." He shrugged.

"I guess that's true..." He looked towards his men. "Well, if you're going somewhere, take Ivan and Bono with you." I huffed.

"Fine." An idea popping into my head, I ran to catch up to Haru and Kyoko. "Hey, can you guys give me directions to the Namimori Shrine?"

* * *

><p>"Ah, stairs; my eternal enemy." I glared coldly at the stairs leading up to the shrine. Luckily, Kyoko's directions were clear and accurate, so we didn't have any problems arriving. Now the only thing standing in between us and the shrine were stairs. It's not that I had a problem climbing stairs (Fon made sure of that) it's just that ever since China and those wretched stairs that went up the mountain, I just had a vendetta against them. I'm pretty positive that it runs in the family; stairs are the number one to keep Dino away from when his men aren't around.<p>

"Um, Princess?" Ivan snapped me out of my thoughts. I turned back to look at them. "Are you going to climb the stairs?" I blinked.

"Oh. Right," I turned back and started walking up to the shrine. "I was just making sure they knew that they were hated." They sighed and followed me, used to my weird explanations.

"So, why are we coming here, Princess?" Bono asked, curious. I shrugged.

"I just know that people go to shrines in this country and I heard that Namimori's shrine is pretty, so I wanted to come while I had the chance," I stated as I topped the stairs. I was surprised when there was only one other person at the shrine, since it was New Years. I was even more surprised when he started talking to me. I walked up to the shrine, admiring its beauty, and passed the guy.

"Hey, aren't you that foreign girl...?" I turned around warily, not recognizing the voice. Bono and Ivan tensed. I stared at his face for a while.

"Oh, yeah!" I exclaimed, my memory returning, "You're that Elvis-dude that showed me to the roof at Namimori!" Ivan and Bono relaxed when they realized I knew him, but they remained alert.

"And you're the girl who Judo flipped Hibari-san," the older teen stated. I rubbed the back of my head, laughing nervously.

"Yeah, I didn't exactly mean to do that..." I peeked around him and scoured the area. "He isn't here, right?" He laughed, startling me a bit, and shook his head.

"No. Hibari-san doesn't enjoy festivities with a lot of people," He explained. I blinked.

"But there isn't anyone else here," I reminded him. He shrugged.

"Usually there are more people here, so the president doesn't come."

"Ah," I nodded. An awkward silence passed between us.

"I'm Kusakabe Tetsuya," He introduced himself. It a moment before I registered this. I introduced myself with a start, once I realized that I was supposed to respond.

"Chiavarone Cloud," I returned and gave a little bow. "And this is Bono and Ivan." I gestured to my body guards. He nodded to them. I mulled over his name, disliking the number of syllables. "Your names long, so I'm just going to call you, Tetsu." I said bluntly. He gave me a strange look, but seemed to except it.

"The guy you defeated last time was Hibari Kyoya." I scrunched my nose.

"I wouldn't say I 'defeated' him exactly, just... flipped him," I argued, the previous encounter with the prefect still giving me nightmares. Tetsu chuckled lightly.

"It's just amazes me that a girl could do that to Hibari-san." I looked up at him and crossed my arms.

"Are you saying girls are weak?" I questioned him, offended. He shook his head a little too quickly.

"No, it's not that. It's amazing for anybody to do that to him. I've never seen it before."

"If it helps any, I really didn't mean too," I inputted. "It was just instinct."

"Well, that was good instinct," he praised. His face grew serious. "But, just a warning, you might not want to hang around here anymore. If he finds you, he won't show any mercy." I laughed, doubling over.

"Like he showed any before!" I wiped away a tear and stood back up. "And besides, I don't go back to Italy until Dino does. And that's..." I trailed off, looking back at Ivan and Bono for the answer. They shrugged. I turned back to Tetsu, an indifferent look on my face. "I'll be fine," I reassured him, "I'm a pro at getting out a sticky situations, and if worse comes to worse, I'll offer Dino as a sacrifice to him; he's stronger than me, after all." Tetsu sighed.

"Your funeral, Chivarone-san." I cocked my head and scrunched my nose.

"Just call me Cloud. I'm not Japanese, so using my last name sounds too formal." He nodded.

"If you say so, Kumo-san."

"Cloud." I corrected him.

"That's what I said." I blinked, then shook my head.

"Close enough, just don't tell your president that you saw me," I said as he was walking away.

"You know, I'll have to if he asks." I snorted.

"Then just make sure he doesn't ask!" I advised simply. He shook his head, smiling.

"I hope we meet again, Kumo-san. And good luck if you run into Hibari-san!" I waved as he walked off, then turned back to the shrine, enjoying the rest of the day in peace.

Unfortunately, I would be running into the prefect sooner than Tetsu thought

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**OK, so I already have the rest of the Meet and Greet arc planned. If you haven't noticed, I am going by the manga since a) That's what I followed and b) going by the anime takes way longer. Although, I might put Cloud in a few anime things, but until then, I will use the manga (but let me know if you want to put Cloud in a specific episode and I'll see if it works). I'm excited for the end of it, because something happens that I forgot and I could put a lot into it! **

**HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYBODY! **

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES, DOLLS!**

**-Klu**


	17. Run Ins and Run Aways

**Chapter 17: Run Ins and Run Aways**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Don't really know why I'm still pointing out the obvious.**

* * *

><p><strong>"There are many types of meetings, and each type is special - first meetings, chance meetings, last meetings, meetings of destiny, meetings of fate – all of which should be treasured and kept, close to the mind and heart."<strong>

**-Leigh Larson **

* * *

><p>"This is troublesome..." I looked up from my manga to see Dino snapping his phone shut with a frown on his face. I narrowed my eyes.<p>

"Trouble back home?" I accurately guessed. He nodded, leaning his head on his hand, deep in thought. His phone beeped, breaking the silence. He flipped it open and scanned the screen. His eyes widened slightly and looked back up at me.

"Looks like Le petite prince Futa is here in Japan, and with Tsuna of all people." I mulled over the name for a bit, until I remembered the ranking child.

"So he's at Tsuna's house?" I earned another nod.

"A convenient coincident," Dino muttered thoughtfully. I stayed quiet, knowing that he was formulating a plan. "Cloud, I need you go to Tsuna's house and try to convince Futa to give us information on the Gospella Family's most influential weapons dealers, so we can stop them from handing out any more weapons to hoodlums and bringing harm to civilians. I would go, but it's better this way, so I can get a head start while you get the information." he rose from out of his chair and turned to Romario. "Gather some men to go with her and get a suitcase of money in case we need to buy the rankings."

I watched as Dino continued to give out orders with precision. It was amazing how responsible and boss like he can be when things get serious. He turned back to me once he was done. "After you get the rankings, you can stay at Tsuna's if you want. Just be sure to give it to one of them so it can get to me as soon as possible." He smiled, dropping his earlier seriousness, and patted me on the head. "I don't want you to get any more involved than you already are." I hopped down from my chair and waved him off as I made my way out the door, his men following.

"Whatever you say, Bro."

* * *

><p>"Oh, Cloud-chan!" Mama stuck her head out of the kitchen as we passed. "I haven't seen you in a while! How have you've been?" I smiled and waved at the kind woman.<p>

"I've been good, Mama. I'll come down later and catch up," I told her as our group started up the stairs. "Dino needs something from Tsuna right now, so I gotta go get it so these guys can give it to him." She nodded in understanding and returned to the kitchen. I wasted no time opening the door to Tsuna's room.

"Yo, Tuna-fish."

"Cloud! And Dino's men!" I smiled, used to Tsuna's introductions. "Huh? Dino-san's not here?" I shook my head as I stepped further into the room.

"That's actually while I'm here," I explained, placing my hand on my hip. "I'm running errands for my brother." I looked at Tsuna's side, spotting the small child. I knelt down slightly.

"You're the ranking prince Futa, right?" He nodded shyly, slightly weary of me. "I'm Cloud Chiavarone. My brother is the boss of the Chiavarone family, Dino. We actually need your help right now; we need to purchase the rankings of the Gospella family's top weapon dealers. They've been causing trouble for us and getting innocent civilians involved. We are willing to pay up front," I gestured behind me where one of Dino's subordinates presented the case of money. I ignored Tsuna's shock, in full business mode. A smile lit up the kid's face as soon as I mentioned Dino.

"That won't be necessary," He said, pulling a huge book out of completely nowhere (Okay, what is up with kids and doing that? Lambo, Reborn and now Futa all seem to have that strange ability! It's insane). "Dino ranks number 1 out of 82263 when it comes to Mafia members who care for the welfare of civilians! I like that kind of boss," he leafed through the book and showed me the rankings. I whistled. "And besides, Dino-nii's Tsuna sworn brother is also my brother and that makes you my sister, right?" He smiled warmly up at me. I laughed and ruffled his hair.

"I've always wanted a cute little brother!" I thanked Futa as he gave me the ranking, then turned to the men behind me. "You know what to do." They nodded and left the room. I turned around and plopped on the bed as if I owned the place. Tsuna looked at me, confused.

"Aren't you going with them, Cloud?"

"Nah, they've got it covered. Besides, Dino doesn't like me getting involved in that kind of stuff," I waved him off. "But I usually end up getting involved anyway," I added as an afterthought. Reborn jumped up on the bed beside me.

"It's hard to come by a chance like this, so why don't you get some rankings too, Tsuna? You too, Cloud."

"Eh, me?"

"Fine with me," Futa happily complied. I shrugged.

"Sure."

"That sounds like fun!" Our heads snapped towards the new voice. Haru peaked her head in. "Is it a new type of fortune telling?"

"HARU!" I sighed.

"Thank you, Tsuna, for that marvelous introduction." I patted him on the shoulder. He sighed at my comment and approached the other girl.

"Why do you always come in uninvited?"

"It looked like it was going to rain, so I took in Tsuna-san's laundry," she chirped, leaving a dumbfounded Tsuna behind as she rushed over to me. "Cloud-chan!" I stiffened at her hug. "Nice to see you again!" I smiled at her, sweat dropping.

"N-nice to see you too, Haru...chan?"_ Cào_, I'm so awkward around girls my age. Luckily for me, her attention was drawn to Futa again.

"Oh yeah, please tell Haru's fortune too!" She begged the child.

"You're tsuna-nii's friend so... okay." He agreed. His statement shocked the strange girl.

"Hahih? Tsuna-nii...? You're not Tsuna-san's illegitimate secret brother are you?" I chuckled at the group's reaction to her accusation.

"If it helps any," I put in from my spot on the bed, "I'm technically Tsuna's sister." Of course this caused even more of a ruckus. Tsuna sent me a glare as he calmed the girl. I shrugged, my amusement already filled. Soon, we returned to the topic on hand.

"Okay, so Haru-san wants her charm point rankings," Futa summed up. "Here I go." I squeaked as random objects around the room began to levitate, including Reborn, who floated as the bed beside me. Not wanting to follow, I hung onto the edge of the bed as Futa was mumbling in front of me. "This is Futa. I can hear you ranking planet."

"WHAT!?" Ah, there's Tsuna's freak out. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING FUTA!?"

"Didn't I tell you?" Reborn said, casually floating by Tsuna. "He's contacting the planet."

"You think I'm going to believe something occult like that!"

"It's romantic..." Haru countered, sighing dreamily.

"It's cool," I agreed, lifting slightly up from the bed, but remained anchored.

"Haru-san's number one charm point out of all 8 is..." we all listened intently."It's your hair whorl."

"Wha-how did you know?" She threw an accusing glance at Tsuna. "Tsuna-san must have-"

"How would I know it would be your hair whorl?" He defended. A shocked look slipped onto Haru's face.

"HAHIEEK! FUTA-KUN IS AMAZING! WHAT A GIFTED FORTUNE TELLER." Tsuna and I winced at her volume. We shared an exasperated look. "Okay, then please tell Haru the top three things she likes about Tsuna-san."

"Right..." Futa paused, gather his information. I snickered and nudged Tsuna.

"This should be good, right bro?" He sighed, shaking his head.

"The top three things on the list of 'what Haru-san likes most about Tsuna-nii' are... his assertiveness… " I began to giggle. "His strength…" I straight up busted out laughing. "And number one is his gentleness." My laughs died down. I shrugged.

"Okay, I'll give you that one." I turned back to Futa while Haru and Tsuna were have... a, uh, moment or something (you never really know with them). "Can you rank me now, Futa?" I asked, wanting to get my rankings out of the way since I vaguely remember his ranking going crazy because of the rain sometime after this point.

"Rankings for Cloud-nee are..." I waited. The boy frowned, a troubled expression appearing on his face. "There... there are no rankings for Cloud-nee...?" I cocked my head.

"What does that mean?" Before Futa could answer, Ipin and Lambo interrupted with their presence. Futa moved on, ranking Ipin and forgetting about my rankings, or lack of rankings. It confused me, but I decided it would be too much trouble to think about it. Reborn however, gave me a look, signifying that he had heard our exchange and that the subject interested him as well. Ignoring the demon tutor, I pushed myself towards the door, floating past Tsuna on the way.

"Since I no longer benefit from this," I placed a hand on his shoulder, "I'm going to go downstairs." He tried to grab me as I went.

"Wait, Cloud! You're the only other sane person here!" I laughed at him as I opened the door and stepped out, gravity taking me again.

"Aw, that's adorable; you actually think I'm sane." he stuck his the upper half of his body out the door, watching exasperatedly as I walked down the stairs. It was that moment that Gokudera decided to burst in and almost run me over. Yamamoto trailed in behind him, at a more leisurely pace.

"1OTH! Why didn't you tell me that the ranking kid is here!?" he shouted in greeting, completely ignoring me and going straight to his boss.

"Gokudera!"

"I bumped into him a while ago," Yamamoto explained, making himself known. "It seemed interesting, so I tagged along."

"Yamamoto!" The baseball player smiled down at me and ruffled my hair.

"Yo, Cloud!" I smiled right back up at him.

"Yama-moto~" I mock curtsied him. I pointed back up to the stairs as Gokudera stormed into the room yelling something about 'right-hand man' (when is he not yelling something about that?). "You better get up there. Don't want to miss anything exciting, right?" He laughed and nodded, rubbing the back of his head.

"I guess you're right." He looked back at me when he realized I wasn't following. "You coming, Cloud?" I shook my head.

"I've already been up there once, and that's good enough for one day," I informed him. "And besides, I'd promised that I'd talk to Mama earlier." He nodded in understanding and entered Tsuna's room. I walked into the kitchen, a warm smile greeting me.

"Ah, Cloud-chan! Done playing already?" I nodded at her.

"Yes, mama. I think that's enough excitement for one day."

* * *

><p>I loved Nana Sawada. Who didn't love her though? She was everything a mother was supposed to be: warm, kind, soft. After having lost my both mothers before, it was incredibly relieving to talk to her. It made me feel safer, warmer, more important, whenever I had a conversation with her. Her hospitality was marvelous the simple way she took in anybody and treated them like her own child. So, it was only natural that I had become attached to her almost instantly.<p>

"I actually need some advice, Mama," I admitted, placing my mug on the table. Nana sipped her own mug of hot chocolate and gave me an inquiring look.

"About what, Cloud-chan? You can ask me anything."

"Well, Dino wants me to get some female friends," I started.

"I have noticed you hang around with the boys a lot," Mama commented idly. I sighed.

"It's that obvious?" She laughed at my expression. "Anyway, it's not like I don't want to hang out with girls my age it's just..." I trailed off. Luckily, the older woman got where I was going.

"You don't know how to act around them," Mama finished for me. I nodded sadly.

"I'm always really awkward and don't know how to respond to chitter-chatter and those kind of things," I elaborated. "The only other girl I talk to on a somewhat regular basis is older than me, and we don't exactly talk about normal things," I elaborated, thinking of my many medical related conversations with Garbiela. I didn't even bother mentioning Lussaria, who was my only other semi-feminine influence (even though he failed at teaching me how to French-braid, although Bel took on the skill beautifully). A thoughtful look slipped on her face as a moment of silence passed, only sounds of sipping breaking it every now and then.

"Well, that can easily fixed with hanging around the girls more," Mama informed. "You should take them up on the girl's day out. It will help." She smiled warmly at me. "And the only other advice I could give you is to just be yourself, Cloud-chan! Haru and Kyoko are wonderful girls and I'm sure they'll accept you. In fact, I'm almost positive that they already have!" She giggled and I eventually joined in. We trailed off, a content atmosphere enveloping the kitchen.

"Thanks, Mama," I looked up at her, smiling brightly.

"I'm always here for you, Cloud-chan!" She tilted her head, returning the smile. We sighed in union, enjoying the peace and serenity.

"I know, Mama."

* * *

><p>"Watch out for the ice, bro," I warned Dino as we made our way to Namimori Middle. He waved me off.<p>

"Please, Cloud, as if a little ice is going t-" I caught him just in time before he hit the ground. He straightened and glared at me.

"I told you s-" He put his hand over my mouth and dragged me inside the school gates. I wriggled out of his grip. I glanced around as we walked, shuddering when I caught sight of a certain tree. "This place brings up bad memories," I chattered, hugging myself and rubbing my arms.

"Hey, Cloud, over here!" My brother and I looked away from the tree to see a waving Yamamoto not too far off. As we neared we saw that Gokudera and Ryohei were with him. Much to Dino's dismay, I clung onto Yamamoto's arm as soon I was within range.

"Yama-moto~" I used my usual greeting and as per usual, he responded by smiling and ruffling my hair. Dino sighed and grabbed my scarf, yanking me back to his side. I crossed my arms and pouted.

"You're Ryohei, right? We met at new year's," Dino greeted the boxer. He smiled and nodded.

"Yeah! I remember you!" His gaze fell on me and he cocked his head. "You're Cloud, right? Kyoko talked about you! She said you were her friend!" My eyes widened, surprised that she said that.

"Smoking-bomb," Dino moved on, greeting Gokudera, who simply clicked his tongue at us and continued waiting for him beloved tenth. We didn't have to wait long.

"HUH? WHAT'S EVERYBODY DOING HERE?!" Tsuna approached us, kids in tow. Ipin, after spotting me, immediately ran to me, Lambo following. I kneeled down to greet them as Dino was explaining our reasoning for being here.

"We thought we should play with the kids once in a while," my brother explained, leaning in and smiling.

"If you think about it, the 10th is always the one taking care of the kids," Gokudera admitted, smiling.

"At least on a day like this, we could give you a hand," Yamamoto laughed.

"You should've just asked Sawada!" Ryohei yelled, being extreme as usual. I picked up Ipin, earning a small whine from Lambo.

"And we really had nothing better to do." This earned a rough shoulder bump from Dino. Ignoring my last comment, a joyful look broke out on Tsuna's face as he thought about how much they were helping out. Of course, that look turned to one of disbelief as the guys turned competitive.

"If we're gonna do something it should definitely be a snowball fight."

"Oh! That sounds exciting!"

"One packed snowball, coming right up."

"FIGHT?! MUSIC TO MY EARS!" Picking up the whining Lambo (who was getting annoying clinging to my boots) I walked over to the horrified Tsuna.

"Really, bro, what did you expect from this group?" I asked him, offering my shoulder to lean on. He gladly took it.

"We'll have to divide into teams," Yamamoto stated, his sport's mind activating.

"What do you do to team up in Japan?" Dino asked. Reborn appeared out of nowhere, fully garbed in samurai armor and unrolling scroll.

"I already decided for you," he announced, earning a surprised squeak from Tsuna.

"You did, Reborn-san?"

"That aside, what an outfit." And there was Tsuna, focusing on the important things. A fake innocent look washed over Reborn's face as he looked up at his current student.

"I put a lot of thought into making sure the teams are balanced out and had to stay up all night. I didn't get much sleep. Look at my eye bags."

"WHAT'S THIS PLAN OF YOURS THAT'S MAKING ME FEEL SO GUILTY?!" They rest of the group seemed fine with it however.

"If Reborn-san says so, I'm okay with it," the bomber admitted. Yamamoto agreed from beside him.

"You're not gonna listen to us anyway," Dino relented.

"I don't mind," Ryohei chimed in.

"EVERYBODY'S TOO EASY ON THIS ARMORED BRAT!" Tsuna turned to me, almost pleading. "What about you, Cloud? You're not okay with this, right?" My expression dead panned.

"Tsuna, do you really think you can change Reborn's mind once he's set on something like this?" The future don sighed in defeat.

"Anyway, the east troop is Tsuna, Yamamoto, Ipin and Futa. You wear white scarves. The opposition is the west troop: Dino, Gokudera, Ryohei and Lambo. You wear red scarves."

"Wait a second, Reborn-san! Why am I on a different team than the 10th!?" Gokudera shot forward, displeased with the arrangement.

"That's a mystery," was the tutor's vague reply.

"THAT'S NOT YET SOLVED?!" Ignoring Gokudera's outburst, Reborn moved on explaining the rules of getting Leon and only having 30 minutes.

"Um, Reborn," I inputted when he was done. "Where do I stand in this battle?"

"Oh, that's right," Dino said thoughtfully, "You never said where Cloud goes." Reborn turned to me, a smirk that I didn't fully trust on his face.

"You have a special job, Cloud." He pulled a sniper looking object out of nowhere and handed it to me after I let Ipin and Lambo down. "This is a snowball sniping gun. You can pack snow in it and it shoots snowballs with the accuracy of bullets. You are the 'sudden death' in this game. You are an individual player whose sole purpose it to knock other teams out. Of course, you could also go after Leon and win too, if you want." I evaluated the gun in my hands, a smile slipping onto my lips.

"Sweet." Dino paled from beside me.

"T-this will not end well..."

"Huh? Can Cloud snipe?" Tsuna asked, eyeing me warily. Dino nodded.

"Yeah... and she's no amateur either." The two paled. I gave them a wicked grin, hefting my new toy on my shoulder.

"It doesn't matter how many times you get hit with a snowball, but you're out if you lose consciousness." Reborn informed us before he dismissed. "Okay, both teams go dig a trench and make some snowballs. Cloud, just go where ever. It'll start in 30 minutes."

Using my thirty minutes wisely, I gained high ground and positioned my sniping snow ball gun, shooting a few shots to see how good it was and how fast I could reload. I also set up a rope (borrowed from Reborn. He seemed more than happy to help the 'sudden death' in the game) where I could easily lower myself to the ground quickly if I see a chance to get Leon. Although, my original objective it to take down as many people as possible, if I see a chance, I was going to take it; winning does feel good after all.

"Let's start then." I leaned on the ledge, deciding to wait before I started my attack, letting them have their fun for now... or at least until I get bored. Reborn blew the horn. For a bit, no body moved. I could tell that the teams were talking amongst themselves below. Then someone dashed out.

"IF WE DON'T GO AFTER THE ULTIMATE GOAL, WE WON'T BE ABLE TO WIN!" I stared in disbelief as the boxer ran out in the middle.

"That guy is another kind of stupid," I muttered. I watched as he and Yamamoto faced off for a bit and then fought Ipin. Boredom took over me after a while. After watching Dino mess up his throw and send it hurtling behind him, I positioned my gun, and zoned in on my target.

"Might as well take the idiot out of his misery," I mused to myself as I hit Ryohei in his forehead. He went down instantly. I blinked, just now realizing just how compact the snow was.

"HEEIH! WE FORGOT ABOUT CLOUD!" Picking up my gun, I moved along the roof, picking out another possible target. At that time, explosions lit up Dino side. Ignoring them, I stopped and got ready to pick on Tsuna's side this time. Unfortunately, he seemed to notice this. I whistled as I dodged a snowball coming right at me.

"Good arm there, Yama-moto~' I sang."But you can't kill death itself!"

"THAT DOESN'T EVEN MAKE ANY SENSE, CLOUD!" Tsuna yelled up at me. He squeaked and dove for cover, barely missing my snow bullet.

"PROTECT THE BOSS!" I barely had time to look over to see Romario, Ivan and Bono burst out of the snow before I was forced to jump off the roof, using my rope, because of the dynamite that was thrown up to my nest. I glared at Gokudera when I hit the ground.

"That was for the tenth! DIE!" He threw more bombs in the air at me and Dino's newly formed team.

"IT'S CHANGED FROM A SNOW FIGHT TO A FIGHT ON THE SNOW!" Using Dino's confrontation with Gokudera as a distraction, I scanned the area looking for the prize, not even bothering to look up when Bianchi revealed herself, and her newly formed team.

"You're willing to join too, Cloud." I looked up to see Bianchi facing me, holding out a uniform. Dino scoffed.

"It's no use, Poison Scorpion. She'll definitely be joining her own family's team." Avoiding both of their gazes, I watched as Lean turned into Turbo Leon in Reborn's hands.

"WHAT, IT RUNS?"

"Sorry, guys," I waved them off, an apologetic smile on my face. I slung my sniper around my arm and took off running after Leon when he started to move, surprising them. "But I'm going solo on this one!" I performed various cart wheels and flips, avoiding the poison cooking and snowballs (Dino wouldn't dare use the bullet filled ones on his sister, and his men weren't willing to shoot them at me either). Luckily, Tsuna soon took their intentions. I focused solely on speed, happy that I was catching up with Leon.

"Oh, come on! Stairs? Really, Leon!" I relented, spying the accursed objects up ahead.

"Yo, Cloud! Sorry, but I'm going to pass you!" Yamamoto broke my concentration, appearing beside me.

"I'm going ahead." Dino popped up from beside Yamamoto. I tried to increase my speed, but both of them passed me. I watched helplessly as they rounded the corner. I stopped in my tracks when Yamamoto came running back, followed by snow ball packed Dino.

"I MISSED IT!" Thinking quickly, I flipped onto the railing, doing a handstand, barely missing Yamamoto and Dino as they rolled by, effectively not getting plowed over. I flipped over to the stairs again and let out a victory yelp. It died down as I watched a giant Enzo rise up from out of the snow. I stood there, frozen as he fell over, due to him being asleep. His impact lifted a sheet of snow, completely covering me in it. By the time I had crawled out of the pile of snow I was trapped in. Tsuna was chasing Leon down. I scowled as they passed the stairs.

"No you don't!" I jumped over the edge and landed on top of Tsuna. He squawked at the impact and with me on top of him using him as a sled, we slid until we reached someone picking up Leon, stopping Tsuna with his foot. I twitched, really hoping it wasn't who I thought that was.

"What's this? And that huge turtle?" Tsuna and I looked up hesitantly. I gulped.

"HIBARI-SAN!" His eyes met mine and they flashed.

"Oh? You were actually dumb enough to return? Do you want to die?" I laugh nervously and gave a slight wave, my hand dropping down to behind my back. Still focused on winning despite the threat to my life, a plan formed in my head. An incredibly stupid plan, but a plan none the less (usually, my plan would be to talk my way out of this, but this guy just cannot be persuaded with words and reason). Tsuna looked back and forth between us.

"Huh? You know each other?!" I gave one more nervous chuckled. A pause. Then I nailed the prefect in the face with a snowball, grabbed Leon from out of his hands and ran off.

"Tsuna, you're my sacrifice!"

"WHAT?" I quickly and smartly ran out of the gates, vaguely hearing Tsuna 'HIEEEK!' behind me. Of course, I didn't look back. Reborn jumped on my shoulder, startling me.

"Congratulations, Cloud. You won," he informed me. "But it was at a cost."

"Okay, just FYI, he wanted me dead before this, so it can't really get worse" I hissed at him, still touchy about the subject. I groaned as a thought popped into my head. "And I forgot to ask him to be in my harem again!"

"You also left your brother behind," Reborn chirped helpfully.

"He'll be fine," I huffed, knowing that there was no way I was going back there. An explosion sounded from behind us, the blast ruffling my hair.

"...yeah, he'll be fine."

* * *

><p>"Huh? You want to talk to Cloud?" Dino glanced down at me, phone in his hand. Reborn had called a few minutes ago, telling us to come to Namimori middle to help with Yamamoto's training. "Okay, if you say so..." He handed the phone to me with a bit of reluctance.<p>

"Yes, Demon Tutor?"

_"Cloud, you know Hibari right?"_

"The guy that tries to maim me every time I see him? Yes, I am familiar with him..." I trailed off, not liking the feeling I was getting from this conversation.

_"So he chases you every time he sees you? Well, this will make things easier then."_

"In exactly what direction are you taking this in, Reborn?"

_"I need you to distract Hibari while we're training. Since the school's closed for today, he might not like us on the grounds disturbing the peace."_

"No."

_"It's either that, or shoot at Yamamoto with the others."_

"... death it is."

_"I knew I could count on you, Cloud."_ I could almost hear the smirk on his face.

"Yeah, yeah, just know that you owe me for this big time," I hissed into the phone and shut it. I handed the phone back to Dino and put on my coat, miffed.

"Where are you going, Cloud?"

"To meet my doom at Namimori Middle." Dino sighed.

"Is Reborn owing you really worth it?" I snorted and turned towards my brother.

"Bro, you and I both know that Reborn owing you is _totally_ worth it."

* * *

><p>I arrived at the school before the others, following Reborn's instructions. All I had to do was keep Hibari away from the baseball field and the roof facing the field, so that he would not see Tsuna and Yamamoto or Dino and his men shooting at Tsuna and Yamamoto. It seemed easy enough, and I was good at evading, and yet it still felt like a suicide mission. I shrugged and easily climbed over the gate to the school and turned around to pick at the lock, opening it for the others. At least this was better than shooting at Yamamoto.<p>

I glanced around the space, noting how empty it looked and wondering if Hibari was even here today. I mean, it was closed, so nobody should be here anyway. I thought about my last sentence. Maybe that's why he would be here in the first place? Pushing those thoughts aside, I entered the school, picking locks as I went and merrily skipping through the hallways. After clearing a path of unlocked doors for Dino leading to the roof, I decided to focus solely on my original mission: Find Hibari and distract. Yeah, I could do that. I might end up dying, but I could do it. After walking around for about half an hour, and not finding the prefect, I went through my options to draw him out.

"I could vandalize something..." I muttered to myself. "But that's not my style..." I thoughtfully stroked my chin, deep in thought.

"Oh? What's this?" I whipped around, seeing the prefect step out from around the corner. "I was patrolling and I happen to come across a little entertainment. This must be my lucky day." He brought his tonfas up, a blood thirsty smirk on his face.

"Hey! Now I don't have to look for you!" I smiled at him. He raised an elegant eyebrow.

"Do you want to die?" I frowned.

"Not really," I told him, rubbing the back of my head, "but, if this means that Reborn owes me, I'm willing to get a few scratches and bruises." He snorted and raced forward to meet me.

"You'll get more than that, Herbivore. I'll bite you to death!" I turned and ducked as he swung at me.

"Wait! There's something I really need to ask you first!" I flipped out the way. When he didn't answer, I went on. I came back from a bridge and leaned in, close to his face. "Do you want to join my harem?" He froze, mid swing. I blinked and stepped back. He didn't move. _"Shun-sheng duh gao-wahn, _I think I broke him." He twitched... and then swung continued his swing, nailing me in the jaw. I shot back, cradling my wound. "You c_hing-wah tsao duh liou mahng_! I think you broke my face!" He smirked triumphantly. I stuck my tongue out at him after I checked to make sure my jaw wasn't hurt too bad. I managed to avoid a direct hit, but it still stung. And it was bleeding. Yuck.

Unfortunately, Hibari didn't give me time to rest. I was completely fine with that however; fighting him gave me an exhilarated feeling that I didn't get often. It was also a confidence boost to me to know that I could easily dodge his attacks. Dodge, not defeat him. Even though I wasn't up to his level of strength I could get by on my wits and tactics. Which is what I ended up using when I slammed a door in his face. He managed to slow down before he hit it, but he hit it none the less. He let out a growl as he rubbed his forehead. Then we heard explosions off in the distance. I paled, knowing it was coming from the baseball field. Hibari's eyes narrowed as he looked towards the sound, contemplating whether he should stay and fight me or protect his beloved school.

"As much as I'd love to bite you to death," he started running towards the sounds of chaos. "I have a job to do." I cursed and ran after him.

"Hibari, wait!" I thought of the first insult that popped in my head. "You mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elder berries!" He paused and turned around. I'm not sure if he understood what I said, but I know he understood one thing; I just insulted him.

"I'll bite you to death!" I squeaked and started running, the prefect right on my tail.

Reborn _soooo_ owed me for this.

* * *

><p>Tetsuya Kusakabe was enjoying his day off from school. Yet, he didn't mind bringing some papers to Hibari per the prefect's request. He was always happy to help out the president anyway. His mind wandered to the strange foreign girl he had formally met on new years. He sincerely hoped that she took his advice and stayed away from the school. Hibari was quite the prideful person after all, and Kumo-san was a nice girl. Nice, but lacking a bit in the head. Evidence of this ran by him.<p>

"_Cào,_ _cào, cào, cào, cào!_" A very familiar looking foreign girl with strawberry blond raced by him and turned the corner. His president soon followed, an intense aura surrounding him. He blinked as the couple disappeared. He continued to the reception room, almost mechanically, set the papers on the desk and sat down. He sighed and cradled his head in his hands.

"What am I going to do with them?"

* * *

><p>My phone rang. I jumped as the prefect tried to take out my feet and landed on another desk.<p>

"Buddy the elf, what's your favorite color?" I back flipped, landing on the floor and rolled out of the way his kick, still listening to the other line. "Ah, you guys done?" I glared as I dodged another yet another tonfa. "Hey, Kyoya! I'm on the phone, so just pause for a minute will you?" He narrowed his eyes when I used his first name. I shrugged. "What"? I think we're at that point now." I squeaked as he charged at me again. "You were saying, Reborn?" Hearing the baby's name made Hibari stopped, luckily giving me time to talk to the tutor (but I still kept my defensive stance, not knowing whether Kyoya would attack or not). Luckily, he seemed interested in the conversation.

_"Good job, Cloud. You kept us from being disturbed."_

"Yeah, but at the moment," I hissed into the phone, eyeing Kyoya carefully, "I need a little help getting out. I'm pretty sure that he'll chase me back to Italy if you don't intervene."

"_Ok." _I blinked as we disconnected. Paling, I turned back to Kyoya, who, noticing that the conversation had ended, was preparing his tonfas once more. I put my arms up in defense.

"Now, Kyoya, let's talk this out..."

"Cloud's right," Reborn chirped, jumping in the room from the window. "Let's talk."

"Baby," Hibari greeted Reborn. He let his tonfas fall to his side, tamed for the moment.

"Reborn, I could kiss you right now!" I kneeled down, smiling at my savior.

"Sorry, but you're too young for me." I blinked, confused by his words for a second. He ignored my confusion and turned to the prefect. "Hiabri, if you are willing to let Cloud go, you can face an even stronger opponent later." Kyoya raised an eyebrow. I continued Reborn's explanation, immediately seeing where he was going.

"Yeah, if you don't bite me to death now, I'll let you fight my brother," I quipped, smiling at him hopefully.

"Your brother?" I nodded.

"He's the boss of a mafia family, and way stronger than me. He also has a different style, so he doesn't just dodge like I do," I explained, hoping to appeal him. He smirked.

"Sounds interesting," he admitted, retracting his tonfas. "I suppose I could wait to bite you to death for now, Kumo." And with that, he walked out, leaving me and Reborn in the room. I shrugged, just glad I was no longer being targeted by Kyoya... I think. Maybe? He didn't really make himself clear.

"Well, thanks for calming him down, Reborn," I said to the baby as we walked out. He jumped up on my shoulder and shrugged.

"I owed you after all." I froze.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, that was not me using your IOU."

"Yes it was."

"No," I corrected him, grabbing him from my shoulder and holding him up, "That was all one big thing. That was still when I was doing my mission for you which is why you owe me in the first place. That last thing did not count."

"How about I still owe me, and now you owe me again?" I was about to argue again, but at this point, I realized that this was as far I was going to get with him. I huffed and put him back on my shoulder.

"Fine." He smirked.

"Glad you can see things my way, Cloud."

* * *

><p>"Looks like you've had a rough day," Dino commented as I plopped down on the bed. I shrugged.<p>

"Yeah, it was okay. You know, chaos as usual." He chuckled lightly. "Oh!" I shot up, remembering something. "Two things: one, I gained another harem member!" He frowned at this. I grinned widely, proud of this accomplishment.

"And the other thing?" He almost hesitated to ask.

"Yeah, well we kind of used you as a bargaining chip to get Kyoya to stop trying to kill me, so if you ever see him, be prepared to be attacked." He blinked, processing this.

"WHAT?" I tried to calm him.

"Calm down, Bro! It's all for the greater good!"

"You used me for your own gain!"

"Well, yeah, but don't you feel good knowing that you saved your sister's life?" He began to mutter nonsense, trying to find a comeback. He let out a giant sigh and sat down, giving up. I patted his shoulder, comforting him. "Don't worry, Dino, I'll always be here causing you problems." I pipped helpfully.

"That's the problem, Cloud..."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Yay! 80 reviews, over 80 favorites and over 100 followers. I am so thankful for all of you dolls! It makes me happy to be sharing Cloud's story with so many people. SO THANKS YOU EVERYONE!**

**Oh, and side note: I finally saw Frozen! I loved it so much and it was adorable. Except the high school musical song scared me at first, but now I love 'Love is an Open Door'.**

**Anyway, I'm going to try to sum up the meet and greet arc in the next chapter or two (probably two since I want one chapter to be all of something I'm excited for). I'm still thinking about one chapter and trying to think if Cloud could even do anything in it. Anyway onto responses!**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEW, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**


	18. Duels and Dates

**Chapter 18: Duels and Dates**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or Sherlock.**

* * *

><p><strong>"All the lives I could live, all the people I will never know, never will be, they are everywhere. That is all that the world is."<strong>

**-Aleksandar Hemon**

* * *

><p>Much to my dismay, we returned to Italy at the end of winter. I was quite unhappy having to depart from my newly acquired Harem members, but at the same time, I did miss home and was anxious to return and relax. Besides, I knew we would return to Japan soon enough anyway. Taking advantage of our return, I contacted Gabriela to meet up a few days later in a small café she recommended near the town her family protected.<p>

"Sounds like you had a lot of boys after you," She teased lightly, after I relayed our trip to Japan to her.

"Yeah, sure," I scoffed, "Because the first thing you do to a girl you like if attack her with tonfas."

"Hmmm," she hummed playfully. "You never know. You seemed pretty attracted to him yourself, actually. You seemed quite fond of that other one as well, the baseball player was it?" I rolled my eyes.

"Oh please, like I'm actually looking for a relationship right now. While we're on the subject, is your father still trying to marry you off?" I smoothly turned the tables.

"He thinks I'm on a date with Mr. Dino right now," She informed me.

"And here you are, on a date with his sister instead. You know, all jokes aside, I think you should meet Dino sometime," I thought aloud. "I think you guys would really hit it off, if not romantically," I wiggled my eyebrows at her, causing a soft giggle, "then at least platonically."

"Maybe sometime," she said, putting her hands around her coffee cup and glancing out the window next to us. "But I really want to work on my medical studies in the meantime. Which reminds me," she said, reaching down for her bag. "I have two new books for you. I got done with them while you were away. Don't mind the notes." I smiled brightly, reaching over to take one of the books and flipping through it, seeing Gabriela's elegant handwriting.

"I don't mind at all, Ella," I said, smiling at my friend.

"There's also something else…" she started slowly, clearly not wanting to rush this. "I sent in an application to study abroad in America." I smiled brightly, overjoyed by this news.

"Ella!" I reached over to grab her hands. "That's great! I know you'll get in."

"I hope so," she said dreamily. "To become a doctor, to help all kinds of people…" she trailed off, wandering into a happy, blissful state. I sighed and released her hands, leaning back into my seat.

"I only wish I was half as selfless as you…" I muttered, my eyes wandering over to the window. Gabriela glanced at me with soft pity in her eyes.

"You're more selfless than you think you are."

* * *

><p>I was surprised when I got a text from Kyoko. I received it about a day after Dino had snuck off to Japan again to take care of some business. I was sulking, mad that he would go without me (despite the fact that I did the exact same thing to him, except what I did was worse because I was gone for two years as opposed to him being gone only a couple of days), even though he said he wasn't even planning on seeing Tsuna and the gang when he talked to me over the phone. So, it was safe to say that I was bored and mad, just wondering around the mansion. Right when I contemplating contacting Bel, since we hadn't hung out in a while, my phone buzzed. I was surprised when I opened it to see kanji instead of Italian.<p>

_'Hi, Cloud-chan! This is Kyoko-chan. I was wondering if you would like to join me and Haru-chan on our girl's day out. Haru-chan mentioned talking about it to you before.'_

I hesitated before I texted back, but remembering Mama's advice, and recalling the ease at which I talked to Gabriela with, I decided that Dino was right; I needed some girl friends that were at least around my age.

**_'When were you guys planning to go?'_**

_'Would two days from now be good for you?'_

I mulled over the proposition. Nodding I decided that I could get to Japan in two days easy.

**_'Sure, sounds like a plan. I'll meet you guys in the Namimori shopping district then.'_**

_'Great! I can't wait to see you again, Cloud-chan! I'll let Haru-chan know right away!'_

I snapped my phone shut, smiling at her enthusiasm. Now I just had to get to Japan again. I skipped off to my room to pack, in a happy mood, completely forgetting to tell anyone my plans for the next few days.

* * *

><p>"I'm back!" Tsuna slammed the door behind him and walked by the kitchen only glancing in.<p>

"Yo, Tuna-fish."

"Hey, Cloud..." he mumbled, dragging himself up the stairs. He froze for a moment, and then ran back down. He stared into the kitchen, eyes wide. "CLOUD?" I waved happily at him from my position at the table, sitting in front of his mother.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Mama chirped. "Cloud has come to visit again! She's going to be staying for a couple days." I nodded in agreement, still smiling up at Tsuna who continued to stare at me in shock. He blinked.

"A couple days?" he seemed to snap out of his trance. "Ah! Does that mean Dino's here too?" He looked around wildly as if he was expecting my brother to just pop out of nowhere. I huffed in response.

"It's not like everywhere I go, Dino has to be there too," I sighed. "I'm my own independent person you know!" Reborn hopped on my shoulder, again appearing out of nowhere.

"Reborn!" And there's Tsuna's introduction...

"He doesn't know you're here, right Cloud?" I blinked, taking in the tutor's statement.

"Oh. I guess I forgot to tell anyone I was going." I rubbed the back of my head. "Whoops. I'll just tell them later or something..." Tsuna blanched, amazed by how irresponsible I was. He sighed.

"You're unbelievable, Cloud."

"Unbelievably hot?" I tried. He stared at me.

"...I didn't mean it like that."

"You didn't deny it either," I quipped. He face palmed. I grabbed my bag from beside me and passed the unresponsive Tsuna as I walked out of the kitchen. "I'm going to put my things in Biacnhi's room, Mama."

"Ok, Cloud-chan!" She waved me off.

Okay, I was calling it; these next few days are going to be fun.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Cloud?" I looked up at Tsuna beside me. We were currently both sitting on his bed, leaning against the wall, reading peacefully. I picked up my head, which had been previously been laying on his shoulder to acknowledge him.<p>

"Yes, Tuna-fish?" His eye twitched in response to his nickname, but he managed to ignore it and continue on with the conversation.

"I was just wondering… why do you curse in Chinese?" I blinked at him as he waited for an answer. I hummed thoughtfully and scratched the back of my head.

"I guess it's really so Dino can't get onto me for cursing," I admitted numbly, shrugging. Tsuna's expression deadpanned.

"Really? Just so you can get away with it?" I raised an eyebrow and shot him a confused look.

"What? Were you really expecting another kind of answer?"

"Well, no…" he trailed off, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, doesn't he know you're still cursing? Dino's pretty smart, right?"

"Of course he knows, he just can't prove it," I explained. "He knows I'm cursing, he just doesn't know what I'm saying."

".. that doesn't make any sense."

"Whatever. Works for me."

"But, why Chinese? Don't you know other languages?" I looked away, having never thought of this before the future don brought it up.

"I suppose I can curse in other languages… well, not German, Italian, English, or Japanese, because Dino knows those. I guess I curse in Chinese because I've spent most of my time in China, and it's one of the languages that comes more natural to me," I shrugged with a blank, nonchalant expression. "It's just become a habit, and a bit of a release."

"But…" Tsuna's face scrunched up, "Should you really be cursing at all? It's a bad thing to do… right?" He had an uncertain tone. I stared up at him a bored expression.

"I've grown up with one of my brother figures yelling curse words every other word. Literally yelling," I elaborated. "I've never really seen it as a good or bad thing. But," I held up a finger, wanting to make a point. "I try not to curse in front of Ipin."

"That's…. actually sweet. You really view her as a little sister don't you?"

"You seem surprised, Tsuna," I said warily, narrowing my eyes. "Is that because you think I'm a bad person?" He paled as I stared him down, obviously thinking of his next words carefully.

"O-of course not, Cloud!" He laughed nervously. "I t-think that you're… a wonderful person?" I ignored that that last part of the sentence was a question, and smiled confidently turning back to one of the manga volumes Gokudera was letting us borrow.

"_Cào _yeah, I am. I'm _niúbī_."

* * *

><p>"Sakura viewing?"<p>

"It's a competition to get the best spot, so I'm preparing," Bianchi explained, packing more poison cooking into the bentos. I paled.

"I don't think that's it..." That's when Tsuna burst in, putting a voice to my concerns.

"Hey Bianchi! You aren't going to kill people just to get a spot are you?!"

"It's a competition for the best viewing spot, isn't it?" She repeated, rolling a rice ball. "I'll show them!" I sighed as Tsuna tried to stop her.

"Stop! Stop! Stop! Sakura viewing should be a happy and elegant event! You're being too blood thirsty!"

"If you're so insistent, you go get the seats," Bianchi rebuked. Of course, this caused the famous, Tsuna freak out. I stayed back, not wanting to get caught up in the events. I planned to go, but after they had gotten the seats, with Mama and the others. If I remembered correctly, then a certain someone I did not want to face for the time being would be there.

"Cloud you go with him."

"What?!" Tsuna and I looked at each other after we said the word in union. "No thanks, Reborn. Tsuna can handle this," I said, patting the said boy on the back.

"Yamamoto will be there."

"Done." I pushed Tsuna out the door. "Let's go Tuna-fish!"

"Why me!?"

* * *

><p>"Ooh!" From my position latched onto Yamamoto's arm, I gazed around and up at the sakura wide eyed. I whistled.<p>

"It's beautiful. I've never seen sakura trees like this before," I noted.

"Woo, lucky!" Yamamoto fist pumped.

"Now I don't have to die..." Tsuna sighed out of relief.

"We're the first ones here!" I frowned, seeing the lack of logic in this scene.

"But isn't it weird tha-"

"This place is off limits." We turned around to face the voice that interrupted me. "All the sakura trees around here have been preserved. Scram."

"Oh, so that's why there aren't any people," I muttered. "Elvis scared them off."

"Hey, that's not fair," Yamamoto stepped up. "It's not like this is private property."

"I never said that this was open for discussion," Elvis-dude sneered, cracking his knuckles. "If you don't leave you better watch out." I snorted at the threat. Tsuna squealed and hid behind me. Meanwhile, Gokudera just got irritated and kneed the guy in the gut.

"Shut up."

"Gokudera!" I turned my head to face Tsuna.

"It's kind of lame to be hiding behind the girl, you know," I teased.

"S-shut up, Cloud!"

"I was wondering who was being so noisy. So it's you guys?" A smooth voice interrupted our bickering. I smiled nervously at the new comer, paling slightly.

"Hibari-senpai!" Tsuna then took a closer look at the fallen Elvis-dude, noticing the band on his arm. "Ah! He's a member of the disciplinary committee!"

"Nice deductions skills there, Sherlock," I mumbled halfheartedly, still focused on Hibari. I half expected him to charge at me. He seemed to notice me by this point.

"Kumo," He acknowledged me. Hiding my confusion, I nodded back.

"Kyoya."

"I'll honor our deal for now," the prefect informed me, "after all, I look forward to biting that person to death." He let a bloodthirsty smirk slide on his face. I searched my head, trying to remember what he was talking about. That person, that person...oh, yeah. He's talking about Dino. I relaxed my stance, feeling a lot better knowing that he honors his deals. Kyoya then turned back to Tsuna, who we had completely lost during our conversation.

"I don't want to view the sakura with a crowd, so I got him to chase people off," He sauntered over to his subordinate, who was pushing himself up off the ground. "But it seems you weren't of much use. I'll take care of the rest." Elvis-dude looked up at him with admiration on his face.

"P-president…"

"Weaklings," Hibari swung his tonfa, knocking the poor guy backwards, "should just decompose." I frowned, crossing my arms.

"He's beating his own people!" Apparently, Tsuna and the guys didn't approve either.

"You guys saw it too. I'm not used to standing above people," Kyoya turned to us, tonfas bared. "I'm only assured when I'm standing above corpses." I had keep my mask of disapproval as I squealed like the fangirl I am mentally.

"Ah, what a nice view. Sakura viewing is such a nice thing." A shiver went down my spine as my creeper alert was going nuts. We turned around to see an extremely drunk, scruffy looking guy in a doctor's coat leaning on a sakura tree.

"Doctor Shamal!" I stiffened when I heard Tsuna's introduction. The man's eyes lit up when he saw me.

"Hello, cutie~" Shamal tried to pounce at me, but I panicked and ended up round house kicking him in the head.

"Cloud, why'd you do that?!" Tsuna freaked, startled by my reaction.

"Sorry, I panicked," I waved off, nonchalantly.

"You panicked?!" He repeated. "That" he pointed at Shamal's body, now on the ground, "was your reaction to panic?!" I shrugged, causing Tsuna to pale at my indifference to knocking a man unconscious.

"That pervert-doctor's still here?" Gokudera scowled.

"I got him to come." We looked up to see Reborn perched in the tree, wearing strange clothes again.

"Even Reborn's here!" Hah, guess who?

'Hey, kid," Kyoya looked up at Reborn. "It's nice to see you again."

"We want to see the sakura too," Reborn explained. My eyes narrowed at the kid, knowing that he was starting something. "How about it, Hibari? Tsuna says to compete, using the spot as a prize."

"WHAT? WHY ARE YOU DRAGGING ME INTO THIS?" Of course, he was ignored.

"You know that you have no saying in this at all, right?" I looked back at the depressed guy. He looked close to tears.

"A game..." the prefect mused. "Fine, I've been waiting to kill you guys anyway. How about you three each fight me separately?" He suggested. "Whoever has their knees touch the ground loses." I moved from Tsuna's group as they debated (more like Yamamoto and Gokudera were totally for it, and Tsuna was just getting dragged along) and went to stand under Reborn's perch, quite happy that Kyoya didn't include me in this and kept to our arrangement.

"Don't worry," Reborn chirped from above me, "That's why I called a doctor."

"THAT GUY ONLY HELPS WOMEN! AND BESIDES, HE'S NO USE NOW!" Tsuna pointed at the fallen Shamal, who to my surprise was pushing himself up. I narrowed my eyes. He was good. I aimed for a spot where I was sure he would be knocked out, but for him to have avoided the brunt of my attack in that little time, and drunk too, proved that he was not one to be messed with. The doctor pushed himself up and looked around, his eyes landing on me again.

"Come here, beati-" Unfortunately, he happened to land beside Kyoya when I kicked him, who found the doctor's pursuing to be rather irritating.

"How annoying," Hibari spat. "Scram." And with a swing of his tonfa Shamal was knocked back again, nailing a tree. I blinked, not expecting this outcome. Oh well, at least the pervert was far away from me thanks to Kyoya. Which reminded me...

I scanned the area looking for a specific person. My eyes lit up when I saw Kyoya's fallen subordinate, who was slowly pushing himself up. I walked over to him as the first fight began.

"Hey, need some help?" I asked, tenderly grabbing his arm and helping him stand. He seemed startled by my presence, and a tough look slipped on his face.

"What do you want?" I snorted.

"Drop the tough guy act, dude," I said, pulling a small first aid kit I almost always kept with me out of my jacket pocket. "I'm helping. Just want to patch up that nasty bump on your face." He looked like he wanted argue, but after an encouraging smile from me, he was silenced. I leaned him against the tree and opened my kit, getting to work. He blinked owlishly, as if just realizing something.

"Y-you're Kumo-san." I eyed him.

"...yes?" I said, unsure if that was the right answer.

"Kusabake-san told us about you," he explained when he noticed my confusion.

"Ah," I breathed out, starting to put the bandages on. Really, when I said 'bump', it wasn't really a bump. Unfortunately, this guy got the full force of Kyoya's tonfa. I frowned, remembering the guy who inflicted this wound I was patching up in the first place.

"Hey, Elvis-dude." He blinked at the name. "If Kyoya does this stuff to you guys a lot," I gestured to the patch on his face I had just finished making, "then why does he have followers like you?"

"The president is a good and strong leader," He started, admiration swelling up in his eyes," even if he's a little strict." I scoffed.

"A little, huh?"

"And he has an amazing devotion to the school and town that we all share!" He explained, his eyes burning with pride. I shook my head, the frown still on my face.

"But he still shouldn't treat you guys so poorly. Doesn't he know about family?" The guy shook his head.

"Hibari-sama's just that way. Nobody can change him." I sighed.

"Somebody can try." The guy gave a small smile and pushed himself up.

"I should go before the president sees me," He excused himself. I nodded.

"Well, try not to get hurt again," I waved him off. "And I'll get to work on that changing him thing!" I called after the guy as an afterthought. I turned my attention back to the fight just in time to see Yamamoto get defeated. I winced as he hit the ground.

"Damnit, I lost again."

"YAMAMOTO!"

"Next up is Tsuna," Reborn informed his student as I ran over to check on Yamamoto.

"You okay?" I asked as I helped him stand. He waved me off.

"I'm fine, Cloud." I nodded, relieved. "A... duster?" I looked up to see Tsuna in dying will mode attacking Kyoya with a duster. I rubbed my eyes. Yep, it was real.

"You're sure inconsistent; sometimes strong, sometimes weak," the prefect admitted as they braced. "I can't read you at all." They broke off and started exchanging blows again. "I'll just kill you then."

"His logic is just brilliant," I noted.

"Whoa…"

"It's a tie..!"

This went on for a little longer, that it, until the flame on Tsuna's forehead sizzled out, leaving behind a very freaked out Tsuna.

"Wah! Hey, wait!" He held up his arms as Kyoya came forward, only to fall to his knees, much to everybody's surprise.

"HUH?! EH? NO WAY! DID I DO THAT?" Tsuna yelled, his hands waving.

"Of course not. He did it." Reborn pointed at Shamal, who was rubbing his head, still leaning against the tree.

"Hey, ow. It wouldn't do to wreck my handsome face."

"Doctor Shamal!" I hid behind Yamamoto for safety as the doctor came over to the group.

"Shamal released the trident mosquito on Hibari the second he was hit," Reborn explained.

"That drunk is that strong!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Sorry, but I've faced far more life-and-death situations than you have. As a side note, the disease he has is one where he can't stand up near sakura. The Sakura Disorientation Syndrome." Tsuna stared at the doctor, bewildered by the strange disease.

"Hibari-san!" Our attention was drawn back to the prefect as he forced himself to stand up.

"Rules are rules," he relented, a blank expression on his face. "Go ahead and enjoy the sakura." He walked away, swaying. I narrowed my eyes, a decision forming in my head.

It was tempting. Incredibly tempting to get the cure from Shamal right now and run over and cure Kyoya, but... I couldn't. He needed to get beaten by Mukuro. Not only because Tsuna needed to beat Mukuro to get stronger, but because of that loss, his first loss, Kyoya realized that he needed to become stronger. It forced him to realize that he wasn't the strongest person and forced him to become stronger. If I cure him, then he has a chance of beating Mukuro and if that happens, even if it was a slight chance, then they wouldn't be strong enough to beat the Varia when they came. And they needed to be as strong as possible for that.

"You know, such a sad look that doesn't suit your pretty face, Miss Chiavarone." I looked up, startled to see Shamal walking over to me, a little more sober now. I looked around to see that the others had arrived while I was lost in thoughts. My eyes narrowed at the doctor.

"What do you want?" He chuckled.

"Whoa! Such coldness from the little lady I saved so long ago!" I raised my eyebrow at him.

"You saved me?" He nodded.

"At your brother's inheritance ceremony," he pointed to himself, proudly. "I'm the reason you're alive today!" I blinked, letting this information sink in.

"Oh, thanks, I guess."

"Do I get a thank you kiss?" He puckered him lips and leaned forward. Ignoring him, I joined the others, slipping on a fake smile.

Looks like I was going to spend my first sakura viewing with a guilty conscience.

* * *

><p>I waited patiently outside of the school gates for Tsuna, and slung my arm around him when he appeared. Gokudera gave an annoyed huff at my actions because they separated him from his beloved boss.<p>

"Yo, Tuna-fish."

"C-cloud! What are you doing here?!" Tsuna glanced around nervously. Other students stared and whispered around us, already spreading rumors of dame-Tsuna having a pretty foreign girlfriend. Oh well, I didn't really care what they said anyway.

"I need directions," I told my 'brother' with a smile. "Haru, Kyoko and I are going shopping later this afternoon and I need to know how to get to the Namimori shopping district and a certain cake shop there." I looked around, noticing that it was only Tsuna and Gokudera. "Oh, and where's Yamamoto?"

"He had a baseball club meeting or something," Tsuna informed me. I frowned.

"Ah, shame." Gokudera seemed fed up by this point.

"Listen woman!" He turned to me, an accusing finger pointed. "The tenth doesn't need to help you! He's had enough trouble today with that Longchamp guy anyway!" I blinked and scrunched my nose.

"That guy?He's horrible." Tsuna looked at me, surprised.

"Huh? You know him, Cloud?"

"Unfortunately, I had to meet with him in Italy a long time ago. That day skills scars me," I shuddered, just thinking about the annoying guy.

"He caused way to much trouble for me, and on the first day back too. In between Reborn and Longchamp, this day has been chaos..." Tsuna grumbled. I patted his back reassuringly. Gokudera tried to smack my hands away.

"Don't touch the tenth so familiarly!" I ignored him, still focusing on Tsuna.

"Well, I guess you don't have to lead me to the cake shop. Directions will do just fine. And just to make you feel better," I winked at him, "I'll put in a good word of you for Kyoko." He gazed up with me, hope shining in his eyes.

"C-cloud! You're so nice!" I waved him off.

"It's nothing! Hey, we're basically family, right? Now where's those directions?"

* * *

><p>I sipped my drink, waiting at the small table outside the small cake shop for the other girls. Haru arrived first, in her school uniform.<p>

"Cloud-chan!" She ran up waving. I smiled and returned the wave. "Huh? Is Kyoko-chan not here yet?" I shook my head.

"Nope, not yet." No sooner had the words left my mouth, we heard a voice coming towards us.

"Haru-chan! Cloud-chan!" We turned to see Kyoko making her way towards us, sparkling atmosphere in tow. "I'm so glad you could make it, Cloud-chan! You're lucky too, today's our appreciation day!" Haru nodded vigorously beside her. I cocked my head.

"Appreciation day?"

"Mm-hm. I was worried because we had to move it from the usual Sunday, but I'm happy we did so that Cloud-chan can be with us!" I smiled at their enthusiasm. I was suddenly grabbed by both girls and dragged into the shop.

"Come on, desu!" They began jabbering about their favorite cake flavors and which ones I should get. I laughed, letting them talk. I didn't mind being the observer in this group. I could never keep up with their enthusiasm after all.

"I'll just have chocolate," I told the employee.

"Hahi! Cloud-chan, that's a little boring," Haru complained as we sat down at the same table outside. I shrugged.

"I guess that I enjoy simple things." They giggled.

"Whatever you say, Cloud-chan!" I smiled, a genuine smile.

Today was going to be a good day.

* * *

><p>The three men eyed the trio of girls as they walked down the street.<p>

"How lucky, to just get out of jail and come across such easy targets," The eldest brother mused.

"I'll go first, brothers," the youngest stood up from the table and made his way to his targets. "After all, I am 'Pickpocket Saburou'." He slunk through the crowd, eyeing the foreign looking girl's back pocket where he had saw her stash her wallet earlier. He smirked, thinking of how easy this will be. He was wrong.

The girl shuddered when he touched the pocket and spun around, nailing him with a kick in the jaw.

"Get away you perverted c_hing-wah tsao duh liou mahng_!" The girl glared at the pick pocket, clearing thinking he had other motives than stealing.

"Cloud-chan!" He friends went to the girl's side, worried looks plastering their faces. "Are you okay?" She waved them off.

"I'm fine. Come on, let's leave this pervert." She hooked arms with them and walked off, leaving the fallen pathetic excuse of a thief behind them. The older brothers watched in horror as the scene unfolded. The second oldest brother rose, holding a vase.

"Don't worry, I'll get revenge for our little brother! After all, I am 'Pickpocket Jirou'." He stood in the street, holding the vase, waiting for the group of girls to pass him.

_"Little girls like them are easy targets when it comes to my tactic,"_ He thought to himself, smirking confidently. _"They'll feel guilty when they end up 'breaking' this vase and I'll pretext them to get money."_

As they walked by, he brushed one of the girl's shoulders, effectively dropping the vase. The girl's eyes widened as she saw it fall. He tried to hold back a smile as it lowered to the ground, but his eyes widened dramatically as a foot lightly kicked the vase back up and a hand caught it. He looked up to see the foreign girl catching the vase tenderly, giving him a blank look.

"You should really be more careful," she chided lazily, handing the vase back to him. He took it mechanically, too shocked to respond. The group of girls walked on.

"Wow, Cloud-chan! Haru is impressed by your reflexes, desu!"

"Ah, it's nothing!" She waved them off.

"Useless! Both of you!" The eldest brother slammed his hands down on the table across from his younger brothers. "You can't even get money from a group of middle school girls!"

"I'm sorry, bro, but that foreign girl is scary!" The other brother nodded in agreement. Both of them were shaking in fear thinking or the orange haired beast of a girl. The eldest brother sighed and stood up, fingering his glasses.

"I'll be the judge of that! In the name of 'Ichirou the Swindler', I'm going to get money from those girls!" He approached the girls as they were sitting outside of a little shop, chattering. His smirk turned into a brilliant fake smile.

"Hello, young ladies, I couldn't help but notice your school uniforms! I was wondering if you'd be interested in scholarship opportunities. All I need is your signatures, of course!"

"Scholarships?" The girl with short, light hair questioned, showing interest. He bit back a smirk as he nodded.

"Yes! You see, with this, money is not a problem at all!" He looked around at the group, seeing the smiles on the first two girl's faces, but froze when he met the lazy green eyes of the foreign girl. She was clearly unimpressed. She sighed and stood up. He jumped when she slung an arm around the man, turning him away from the other girl's curious gazes.

"Listen, bub," she drawled an intimidating aura surrounding her. He shuddered, genuinely scared by this point. "My brother is the boss of one of the most influential mafia families. As pathetic as it was to see you try to con us, you and I both know that this won't work. So," a smile slipped on her lips as she patted his back. "Do yourself a favor and scram before I get even more annoyed with you and your pathetic brothers." He froze for a second, not moving due to shock. Then, when logic returned to him, he bolted, not wanting to go to jail a second time. The other girls stared as he ran off, confused.

"What was that about, Cloud-chan?" Kyoko looked up at her friend, who was slipping back into her seat, a confident smile on her face.

"Oh, nothing. They were just trying to scam us, so I just convinced him to change his ways and leave us alone."

"Hahi! Cloud-chan is so smart!" Haru clapped her hands in admiration. The Italian girl smirked and flipped her hair.

"I suppose I am, Haru-chan."

* * *

><p>"Cloud?" I looked up to see Tsuna staring at me.<p>

"Hm?" I slurped another mouthful of ramen. He sweat dropped.

"Are you really eating a cup of ramen for breakfast?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you need to get to school or something?" Tsuna jumped up.

"Ah! I'm going to be late!" I watched in amusement as he ran out the door, tripping at some points. I chuckled lightly and cleaned up after myself as I finished my ramen cup. Lambo and Ipin ran in with Mama behind them.

"Ah, be careful you two!" I managed to grab Lambo as he tried to chase Ipin. The young Chinese girl hid behind my legs and glared up at the kid.

"Whoa there, brat," I held Lambo up, giving him a firm stare. "What exactly are you trying to accomplish by chasing Ipin?"

"S-she's taller than me!" he blubbered, tears brimming in his eyes. I snorted.

"And because of that fact you decided to chase her?" He nodded defiantly. Mama sighed.

"They're a handful, aren't they?" She laughed and wiped her forehead, tried from having to chase the kids. I frowned, noting how stressful it can get taking care of these kids every day. I brought Lambo closer to me, taking away his grenade he was about to throw.

"Mama," I caught her attention. "How about I take the kids out today so you can rest?" She clapped her hands.

"That would be great, Cloud-chan!" I smiled and scooped up Ipin, telling her what we were doing in Chinese. She seemed to like the idea. "Be sure to take Reborn too!" Mama chirped. I blinked.

"Huh?" Reborn jumped on my shoulder.

"Yeah, Cloud. Let's have some fun." I paled, not particularly looking forward to babysitting the demon tutor.

* * *

><p>"Why are we going to the school?" I drawled towards Reborn as I watched Lambo happily skipping in front of me. I held Ipin in my arms and Reborn perched on my shoulder.<p>

"Because it's a half day and we're going to help Tsuna."

"I can't, Reborn," I gestured to the kids. "I'm babysitting." He waved me off.

"Just ditch Lambo somewhere and bring Ipin with you. She won't do anything," He suggested, showing the lack of care he had for the brat.

"I promised Mama that I would take care of them," I chided. Lambo tripped, falling flat on his face. We stared down at him unimpressed. He began shaking.

'T-tolerate... WAH! I CAN'T DO IT!" I sighed and tried to shush him as other students around us stared at the brat on their way home.

"Oh! Cloud-chan!" I looked up to see Kyoko walking towards me. She saw the crying Lambo and a soft smile slipped onto her face. "Do you need help?" Reborn beat me to answering.

"Can you take care of Lambo and Ipin for a while, Kyoko? Cloud's busy helping me help with Tsuna." I glared at the tutor.

"You can't just ask her that," I hissed. Kyoko laughed and waved me off.

"I don't mind! Maybe I can even ask Haru-chan to come and play too! I like spending time with the kids anyway," she admitted picking up Lambo and calming him.

"Are you sure?" I asked, tilting my head, trying to squish the jealously I felt when I saw her calm Lambo so easily. She nodded.

"It's no problem at all!" I relented and told Ipin what was going on. I let the girl down and she happily walked off with Kyoko and Lambo, off to play in the playground nearby.

"I feel kind of bad for dumping them on her..." I muttered, frowning, still a little jealous over her ease when handling the kids.

"You should feel better knowing that you get the honor of helping me." I turned around to face Reborn again. He held out a bundle of Egyptian looking clothes and a Cleopatra wig to me. "Put this on," he commanded, already getting in a sphinx costume. I frowned.

"No. I'm not getting caught up in this again." He frowned.

"Then the least you can do is carry me," he said, giving me a sad look. "I can't move in this costume. Look how vulnerable I am." My eyes narrowed.

"Are you trying to make me feel guilty? I'm not Tsuna you know."

"Fine. Carry me or die." I sighed and picked him up.

"Whatever, demon tutor."

After stopping by the front office to get a visitors pass (I learned my lesson from my first visit to Namimori), we went off to find Tsuna. It didn't take long. I set Reborn down on the window ledge and leaned on it beside him, waiting for Tsuna to notice us.

"I think this is a good idea," Reborn chirped, commenting on Longchamps suggestion to do something this year. Tsuna whipped around to face us, his eyes growing wide when he saw his tutor's costume. "Let's begin!"

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"I was thinking of starting pyramid powers during the new semester," Reborn explained.

"YOU CAN JUST START LIKE THAT!?" I laughed at Tsuna's freak out, drawing attention to myself. "Huh? Cloud? Why are you here?!"

"Technically, I'm babysitting Reborn for Mama," I informed him. He stared at me, still trying to get over the fact that I was here.

"Ah!" Longchamp pointed at me. "I know you! You were that girl I went on a date with that one time!" Tsuna started laughiing.

"You w-went on a date with him?" I frowned, not liking being laughed at.

"It was for business reasons only," I rebuked.

"Anyway, Sawada-chan, who is that!? This really cute baby!" I raised an eyebrow and smirked at Tsuna.

"Sawada-chan?" I questioned. Tsuna turned red and glared at me.

"S-shut up, Cloud!"

"I'm Tsuna's home tutor, Reborn," said baby explained. Longchamp was clearly impressed.

"Now way! So cool! Even though you're so young!"

"Don't underestimate him no matter what, Longchamp-kun!" He turned to look at the new voice. I scowled when I saw the butler guy with two other weird looking people standing behind him. He rudely pointed at Reborn. "He's the Vongola's number one assassin!" Tsuna stared at the trio on horror. I looked away, bored with the direction the conversation was going as Longchamp introduced the people. After all, I was only here to 'babysit' Reborn.

"Oh! Club! Bull's eye! Good idea!" Longchamp jumped around, excited. I blinked noticing that Reborn was gone. I started to walk off to look for the baby, or otherwise known as my responsibility for the day. Tsuna gazed after me pitifully as Longchamp dragged him off to go join clubs.

"Cloud! Wait, don't go!"

"Sorry, 'Sawada-chan', but I gotta go find your demon tutor," I waved him off as he was dragged around the corner.

"Now where'd that brat run off too...?" I mused out loud. "He couldn't have gotten far, seeing how he can't move much in that costume." I sighed and began walking around the school, not all that worried about my lost charge. I rounded the corner, surprised to see Kyoya beating some poor guy to a pulp. He finished up quickly and turned around to face me, an eyebrow raised.

"Oh? Kumo is here?"

"Oh!" Quickly remembering something, I whipped out my visitors pass from my pocket. "Don't worry, I'm legally here," I piped, presenting it to the prefect. He looked it over and nodded in approval. Then Reborn appeared, floating inside a pyramid. We blinked up lazily at him.

"Hello, Hibari, Cloud," He greeted us. I nodded in acknowledgement.

"Baby, it's nice to see you again," Kyoya returned.

"Same here, Hibari. I just wanted to inform you that Tsuna wants to join the Disciplinary Comittee." The prefect raised an eyebrow.

"Hm? That small animal?" He shrugged and started dragging the body of the person he beat to a pulp. "We'll see." Meanwhile, I was staring at Reborn, trying, and failing, to figure out how he was floating. I turned around when I heard Tsuna behind me.

"Hibari-senpai!"

"Hey."

"Ah, and Cloud, there you are!" I blinked, and waved from behind Kyoya. "Hibari-senpai is a 3rd year now... right?" Tsuna asked hesitantly. Kyoya dropped the body and crossed his arms.

"I always pick whatever year I feel like." I sighed.

"Your logic is breath taking as always, Kyoya." He snorted at my comment. Longchamp ran up to Tsuna, shouting about staying together and what not. Tsuna stiffened, most likely afraid that the guy would annoy Kyoya and they would be bitten to death.

"I heard you wanted to join the Disciplinary Committee, right?" the prefect asked, surprising Tsuna.

"Uh! Who told you that!?" Tsuna paled.

"I heard it from him," Kyoya pointed behind us at Reborn, who was still in the floating pyramid costume.

"Ah, good, good!" Longchamp slung his arm forcibly around Tsuna. "let's do it, Sawada-chan!" He waved at Kyoya. "Aw, hi there! I'm the eighth leader of the Tomaso, Naito Longchamp!" Kyoya remained unimpressed. I sighed.

"Sure, just say you're in the mafia," I commented. "It's not like that'll get you killed or anything." I watched in amusement as Tsuna pushed Longchamp away, much to the latter's surprise. I blinked owlishly as Kyoya used his tonfa to reflect a bullet. I squinted up at the roof to see the butler guy from earlier, aghast that the bullet was deflected.

"That sound just now…" Tsuna muttered in disbelief, "Was it a gunshot towards Hibari-senpai." The said senpai let a small, violent smile sneak onto his face.

"What's this? If you want to fight me, just say so." Tsuna freaked out of course. I remained idly observing from behind Kyoya, not reacting when Longchamp go shot and became depressed (which did not help the situation in the least, even making Kyoya more excited to beat them up), or when Tsuna followed soon after. Kyoya stopped and stared at the two pathetic beings. For a moment, I thought it actually worked as the prefect started walking away.

"There is nothing less amusing than destroying those who have no will to live..." he looked back at the two."Well, maybe not," he turned back and began beating them mercilessly.

"Kyoya used 'Tonfa'! Critical hit!" I joked, finding their antics to be amusing.

"That's Hibari alright," Reborn appeared beside me, in the sphinx costume again. I stared down at him.

"How the _cào _did you get back into that costume so fast?" He looked back with 'innocent' eyes.

"It's a mystery." I sighed and looked back to the one way massacre, not even trying to figure out the wonders of Reborn and his strange costumes.

* * *

><p>"What!? Is that true Romario?"<p>

_"Ah, y-yes, boss. The princess is missing. We took a few days before calling to look for her ourselves and not to worry you, but after checking her recent purchases, we saw that she had bought a plane ticket to Japan. So, as of now, all we know is that she is in Japan..."_

"Sorry, Tsuna! Something came up! I'll find somebody to take my place!" Dino yelled back as he ran out of the bowling alley.

"Dammit, Cloud! Why do you always go off on your own!" he muttered as he made his way to the Sawada household, his first check point.

* * *

><p>I happily made my way to the bowling alley, thinking of how great it would be to see one of my favorite people. I had realized that I hadn't seen my favorite baseball player the whole time, and since I planned to leave tomorrow in order to see Gabriela before she left for America (I wasn't surprised at all when she told me the good news), I set out to spend today with him. After going by the sushi shop, I was informed by his father that Yamamoto was at the bowling alley with the baseball team, and after staying and talking with the man for a bit, I set out on my journey. I almost got barreled over on the way, however.<p>

"Dino?" I glanced at the figure that was racing down the road, not even glancing in my direction. I shrugged and continued to my destination. I entered the bowling alley and glanced around, in search of a familiar face.

"They seem to be having fun!" I smiled and made my way over to the voice.

"Yo, Yama-moto~" He turned toward me, smiling widely.

"Ah, Cloud! I haven't seen you in a while." He ruffled my hair as I latched onto his arm.

"I've been in Japan for the past few days, but I'm leaving tomorrow," I explained to him as we walked away from the struggling Tsuna and two... unique looking girls. "So for my last day, I wanted to spend time with my favorite baseball player!" He laughed.

"Aw, that's sweet! Well, I'm sure you can join us in bowling. I'm here with the baseball team," Yamamoto assured me, gesturing towards a group of middle school guys who were all staring at me curiously.

"Is that your girlfriend, Yamamoto-kun?" One of them bravely asked.

"She's cute!" Another one commented, winking at me. Yamamoto waved them off as I sat down and crossed my legs.

"Me and Cloud are just really good friends," He informed his team.

"Ah! I'm deeply wounded by your words," I fake fainted, earning a laugh.

"So that means she's available?" One eager guy asked. Yamamoto laughed nervously and waved them off.

"Come on guys, stop pestering her! We came to bowl, right?" He managed to change the topic for the time being. Reborn jumped on the back of the bench I was sitting on.

"Let's make this interesting," he suggested, calling the team's attention. I narrowed my eyes, not liking when he started a conversation with that. "Whoever wins the bowling match gets to go on a date with Cloud after the game." I blinked. The guys smiled, agreeing with this idea. Yamamoto scratched his head.

"Are you sure that's okay, kid? What do you think about this, Cloud?"

"I ob-" Reborn threw Leon at me, who turned into an 'x' covering my mouth. I tried in vain to get him off, mumbling nonsense.

"Cloud thinks that it's a good idea," Reborn answered in my stead.

"But she looks mad," Yamamoto noted.

"No, she's just showing how happy she is," Reborn corrected him.

"Oh! I see," Yamamoto smiled and then turned to get his bowling ball. "Then I'll definitely win!" As he walked away, leaving Reborn and I on the bench alone, Leon jumped off my mouth and turned back into lizard, returning to his master.

"What the _cào _was that?" I hissed at the baby. He shrugged.

"I was bored." I stared at him.

"You were bored?" He nodded. "Therefore, you made me a prize in a bowling competition?"

"You're not the prize, Cloud," he corrected me, "What they're competing for is a date with you. Don't flatter yourself." My eye twitched. I started to say something, but after remembering exactly who it was that I was talking to, I settled with only a few select words.

"I really hate you, you know?" I grumbled, sliding down in my seat, making myself comfortable, knowing I was going to be here for a while. The tutor smirked.

"I know."

* * *

><p>The competition actually took up the entire afternoon and went a little bit into the evening, due to the size of the baseball team and the number of games they had to play to see who won the date. Fortunately, I was quite content because the guys bought me food and drinks throughout the event as I watched. Honestly, I'll admit that all the attention went to my head at one point. I was a happy little prize.<p>

Competitive Yamamoto was quite scary. I mean, I wasn't even playing against him and I saw this. Which is most likely the reason why he won in the end.

"I guess that I just got lucky!" He laughed as we walked out, me latched onto his arm per usual and Reborn on his shoulder. The rest of the team followed, a little depressed. "So, where do you want to go for the 'date', Cloud?" He looked down at me. I pulled out my phone and glanced at the time, frowning when I realized how late it really was.

"Sorry, Yamamoto, but we'll have to plan it for some other time," I sadly informed him. "I have to catch an early flight tomorrow and I still have to pack tonight." He waved me off.

"It's fine, it's fine," he reassured me, ruffling my hair. "As long as we get together sometime, you know?" I laughed, agreeing with the easy going baseball player. After parting ways with Yamamoto, Reborn and I headed back to the Sawada household. We walked in, surprised to hear sobbing from the kitchen. I peeked around the corner hesitantly to see a very beat up looking Dino and Tsuna sitting across from each other at the table. Dino seemed to be the source of the sobbing.

"When I ran off to look for Cloud," Dino continued, neither of them noticing that I came in. "I wasn't looking where I was going and almost got ran over. Then when I was yelling for her, some thugs came up to me and said I was disturbing the peace and they beat me up! I managed to get away, but then I ran into the cow kid and the little Chinese girl. The cow brat started throwing grenades at me, and I guess the girl thought I was Cloud because she wanted to spar with me. Finally, she realized who I was and led me back here," he finished, sniffling. Tsuna looked at him, shocked.

"T-they tried to turn me into a pencil case..." was Tsuna's lame story. I cleared my throat, startling both of them with my presence. I waved nervously at them.

"Hi," I said, pulling a Moriarty. They stared at me. It took Dino a while to do anything, the he sprung at me, embracing me in a huge, strangling hug.

"Don't you ever go off like that every again!" He scolded me as I tried to wriggle out of my grip.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry! I forgot to tell anybody!" I apologized, but focused more on escaping. "I'm going back to Italy tomorrow morning, anyway!" I managed to slip out of my brother's arms and run up the stairs.

"Cloud! I'm not done with you yet!" Dino yelled up at me, and tried to follow, but ended up falling back down the stairs thanks to his clumsiness. Tsuna stared at us in bewilderment as he witness the squabble.

"I'm so glad that I'm an only child..."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I feel like I'm really teasing shippers with this one, but oh well. So, I solved the Cloud-Hibari problem, so thankfully, Hibari isn't majorly pissed off at Cloud as much now (but he will eventually get his revenge and all that jazz). I'm excited to get to the next chapter because I have decided that two major things are happening (well, one major thing and something I just want to write). **

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEW, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**


	19. What Goes Thump in My Head

**Chapter 18: What Goes Thump in My Head**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or the quote from Frozen (I couldn't help it).**

* * *

><p><strong>"Your existence is not impossible. But it's also not very likely."<strong>

**-Welcome to Night Vale**

* * *

><p>"Cloud, are you OK?" I shifted my tired eyes to Dino, who was giving me a very worried look from across the table.<p>

"Peachy," I muttered. A lie, of course. Peachy did not describe the obvious bags under my eyes and my sour mood. I stared into my coffee blankly. Dino blinked and looked back at Romario.

_"What should I do?"_ he mouthed to his right hand man. The said right hand man simply shrugged his shoulders. Dino narrowed his eyes. _"You're useless." _Meanwhile, I was still in the same state, finding my coffee to be the most interesting thing in the world. Well, more interesting than the headache that has been depriving me of sleep for the past three days.

"Have you tried getting more sleep, Cloud?" Dino asked hesitantly, testing me. My head shot up, glaring at him.

"Really? You'd think I'd of thought of that before," I remarked sharply. His frown deepened. Under his gaze, I decided to elaborate more. "It's this _go tsao de _headache!" I nearly cried, clutching my head. "It's been going on for the past couple of days and it gets worse every time I try to sleep! Usually, I'm able to tolerate it more around 10 or so, but when night hits and I try to go to sleep, 'bam' and it's back!" My head made a 'thunk' sound as it collided with the table. I groaned loudly. Dino stared at me and patted my back, not really knowing what else to do. He knew not to ask any other stupid questions, knowing that I would have already tried every commonly known way to cure a head ache. So, he did the only other thing he could do at this point and tried to physically comfort me.

Well, he got good-big-brother-points for trying.

* * *

><p>Concealer did wonders to hide the dark bags under my eyes. Now, I'm not the one to usually wear makeup, because quite frankly, I don't need it (I love anime physics and laws) and I considered it too much of a hassle to put on (and despite how much Lussaria offered to teach me how to apply it, we've never gotten to actually lessons), but at this time, with the severe lack of sleep I was getting, I needed it. And besides, I figured since it was a special occasion, I could get by with it. It was Reborn and Bianchi's wedding after all.<p>

Dino had gotten a call just the other day and before I knew it, I spent a sleep deprived plane ride getting told what I was supposed to do in the wedding over the phone by the bride herself. Bianchi had held me in such high regards for telling her where Reborn was all those years ago, that I was the maid of honor in her wedding. She had even already gotten me a dress to wear and everything. I didn't mind, finding it to be an honor and all, but I was a little sad knowing that it wasn't actually a real wedding. Well, at least my head ache was getting to the tolerable stage by this time.

Dino immediately called Reborn as soon as we got in the car and were heading off to the church.

"Hey, congrats on the wedding Reborn." I leaned my forehead against the window, still agonizing over the head ache. "Haha, what do you mean you don't know what I'm talking about?" I saw Dino reflection in the window pale and almost drop the phone. "WHAT?! YOU'RE RUNNING AWAY! WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S UP TO ME?" I groaned and threw my hand back, patting Dino's face until I found his lips and covered them.

"Ssssshhh," I hushed him. "Loud words... not now." Dino sent me an apologetic look as he whispered back into the phone.

"What do you mean by replacement?" I gave him a thumbs up, approving of his new volume setting. "Is that really going to work, Reborn? Wait, don't hang up!" He leaned back and sighed in anguish as his tutor cut off the conversation.

"Problems?" I mumbled, my voice muffled from pressing face against the window.

"Yeah, Reborn ran off. I think he was sleeping when Bianchi asked him to marry her and she misunderstood his nods as a yes," Dino explained running his hand through his hair.

"Ah, sounds fun," I drawled, not surprised at the least. Dino blinked at my lack of reaction, but put it off as my lack of sleep.

"You really need to get that problem fixed, Cloud," he said seriously. "It's starting to really affect you." I pushed myself up with a little effort, waving him off shakily.

"I'll be fine," I assured him pathetically, only to fall forward, leaning on the seat in front of me. "Just charging for the wedding." Dino sighed at my state, and continued his explanation.

"Reborn has left a replacement doll to put in his stead for the wedding, so I'll be busy controlling that. If the poison scorpion finds out her bailed on her, the results with be catastrophic."

"That's nice..." I commented, beginning to slide down the back of the seat. Dino frowned and pulled me back up.

"Are you even listening, Cloud?" I nodded drunkenly.

"Yes; Bianchi has a cat trophy, right?" He stared at me. I sleepily blinked back at him.

"No..."

* * *

><p>The moment I stepped out of the car, I was ushered to the bride's waiting room and changed into a very pretty light purple bride's maid dress. It was all kind of a blur getting ready, trying to ignore the head ache and everything, and before I knew it, Kyoko, Haru, Tsuna and Mama were there, gushing over Bianchi.<p>

"Thanks you guys," Bianchi said shyly, putting a hand to her cheek. "I've always wanted to be a June bride. I asked Reborn about it, and he nodded in agreement many times."

"June bride! How wonderful!" Haru cooed, a dreamy look on her face.

"I want to be one too!" Kyoko agreed. "And Cloud-chan looks pretty too!" Haru nodded in agreement. I waved them off, putting on a happy face for them.

"Aw, guys, you're too kind!" I held back a wince and another pulse went through my head. Tsuna glanced over at me, a concerned look on his face. Gah, stupid hyper intuition or whatever it's called.

"Reborn's just in the room next door. Are you going to take a look?" Mama asked her son.

"Yeah," Tsuna nodded, looking away from me. I got up and grabbed his shoulder, leaning on it somewhat.

"I'll come too," I informed him as we walked out. "I haven't seen Reborn yet either." I left out the part that I knew I could wallow in agony in the other room since it was just him and Dino. He's already worried about me anyway. Tsuna knocked on the door and peeked his head in.

"Reborn?" He stepped inside the room. I sent straight for the comfy chair in the corner and plopped down in it, making myself as comfortable as possible. "Wow! You're looking all formal too! The clothes really do make you the man! For something like this you should have told me earlier! But, still..." he took to the figure's arm to shake it. "Congratulations." There was a cracking sound. I watched lazily as the arm in Tsuna's hand just popped off. "IT CAME OFF!" I winced at the volume, clutching my head.

"Who is it?" Dino burst in the room, but relaxed when he saw us. "Oh, it's just Tsuna and Cloud."

"DINO-SAN! REBORN'S H-" I nailed him in the head with my shoe.

"Ssssshhhhhh!" I hissed at him, clutching my head. Tsuna stared at me, rubbing his head tenderly.

"What's wrong with Cloud?" he lowered his volume, lowering his volume wisely.

"She's been having a really bad head ache for the past few days and hasn't been able to get any sleep," Dino explained, the worried look returning. "I'm having her checked out when we return." He looked back at 'Reborn'. "Oh, and that's a doll. That's why the arm came off."

"A-a doll? Then where's Reborn?" For once, Tsuna was actually quite when freaking out.

"He didn't come. In fact, you could say that he ran away."

"THE GRO-" I shot him a glare. "The groom ran away?" He hissed. Dino nodded and repeated what he had told me earlier in the car.

"Then it was a misunderstanding on Bianchi's part! And if Bianchi finds out that Reborn ran away..."

"We'll all be dead," I finished lamely for him. "Actually, that would be a lot less painful than the state I'm in now..."

"I think Reborn saw this coming," Dino continued after they gave me a pitiful looks.

"This is a replacement? Won't we get busted immediately is we use a doll?!"

"Say that again if you have the guts," the doll said in an exact copy of Reborn's voice. I sighed and put a pillow over my head as Tsuna freaked out again. Dino laughed.

"Even you thought it was him. It's pretty well-made. I heard he was made with Vongola's newest technology," Dino explained, holding up the remote that controlled the doll. "You can use this remote to have him do simple actions and say basic phrases and words."

"He looks exactly the same when he moves!" Tsuna admitted.

"I've already sent someone to look for Reborn, so now all we can do is use the doll to hold out for as long as we can." Tsuna's look he gave Dino was very un-hopeful. They walked out, making the doll walk out with them and shut the door, on their way to the wedding. I blinked at the closed door.

"Gah!" There was an exclamation from the hallway, and they burst back in, grabbed me and set me up on my feet. They dragged me out the door and shut it again. I blinked at my bare foot.

"I need my shoe..."

* * *

><p>Surprisingly enough, the wedding itself went smoothly. At the reception I sat by Bianchi, as her maid of honor (well, technically, junior maid of honor), with a blank and sleepy expression on my face. Luckily, the wedding didn't require much out of me, just to basically stand there and look pretty. I could do that. I stopped myself before my head landed in my plate of food. Yeah, I could do that.<p>

Tsuna and Dino sat at a table nearby, responding to Bianchi via the Reborn doll. I had to admit they were doing a pretty good job.

"Ah? Aren't you going to drink Reborn?" Bianchi asked, gazing lovingly at the doll.

"I don't need to."

"I had your favorite especially prepared."

"I don't need to."

"Don't be like that," Bianchi raised his drink to the doll's lip, tilting it in his mouth. "Come on." Tsuna and Dino freaked out from there table and the doll went haywire.

"SHANANANANANANANANANA!" I winced at the loud noise that it was producing. Bianchi was fuming.

"This... isn't Reborn. Reborn wouldn't talk like that." I blinked and Bianchi had guns in her hands. I blinked again and rubbed my eyes, trying to figure out where she had those hidden. Everyone else in the room froze with shock. Dino stood up, laughing nervously.

"What are you talking about, Bianchi? Look, it's Reborn!" He gestured to the now calmed doll standing on the table.

"Ciaossu."

"This is a wedding reception! Even he would be nervous!"

"Nervous!" Bianchi looked shocked, not having thought of that possibility. She then glomped the Reborn doll. "You're right... I didn't consider his feelings at all. I still love him enough. Forgive me Reborn."

_W__ǒ__ c__à__o_, this woman is a different type of crazy.

* * *

><p>After I changed into my next dress, courtesy of the bride, I slipped into the grooms changing room, in the middle of Gokudera agreeing to help. Ignoring everybody else completely, I dove for the comfy chair. They hadn't seen to notice me. I watched idly as Lambo popped in, wanting to play with the remote that controlled Reborn. I turned around and covered my ears, trying to block out the noise.<p>

As I closed my eyes, the drumming in my head took over all my senses. I could feel it vibrating through me physically. I opened my eyes to find myself in a small, metal, square shaped room. I curled up in the corner, and pressed my small body up against the cold metal. I glared, trying to put on a brave face, at the opposite wall, where the beating was coming from. I stood up and began yelling at it.

"Get out! Get out of my head! You thief! You burglar!" I ignored the fact that my voice was different, more childlike. The burglar seemed to have heard my outburst, for the drumming stopped. I warily approached the wall, my small feet cold from the metal. Movement caught my eyes in the corner or the wall.

I screamed when the head of a snake popped out of a small space in the corner. I immediately kicked it with my foot and shoved it back in the opening. I scrambled back as it was sealed with ice. The beating began again, and I screamed and clutched my head. The ice began to spread throughout the metal box until it covered every surface but the small patch of metal I was on. I began to cry, and watched as my tears turned into pearls and clattered on the ground. I hugged myself harder as the drumming increased, something I didn't think was possible.

"Go away, burglar!" I yelled out as a new noise entered my hearing range.

_"Cloud..."_

_"Cloud...!"_

"CLOUD!"

* * *

><p>Dino caught my arm as I lashed out at him, my eyes wide and brimming with tears. I stared at him in shock, and drew my hand back, that fact that I tried to hit Dino sinking in.<p>

"I'm sorry," I choked out. I winced as another pulse went through my head. Dino continued to stare at me. He shocked me when he enveloped me in a hug. I was about to say something, when I noticed that he was shaking.

"You weren't waking up," He shakily told me. I froze, having never seen Dino as shaken up as this. "Cloud, you weren't waking up." He repeated in a firmer tone. Then I realized what had happened, what he must been through. Walking in to see his sister in distress while she's sleeping, trying to wake her up only to have the sick realization that _she's not waking up_. Not knowing what else to do, because _she is not responding. She's not waking up. _He must have thought I was dying. I would have thought the same thing if our positions were switched.

He released me, and I covered my mouth with my hands, still thinking of what he had to go through. He scowled at looked away from my distressed state.

"Cloud, we need to do something about this."

* * *

><p>On the hasty plane ride back to Italy, Dino filled me in on what I missed. Apparently, they had forgotten about me asleep in the room and I had missed the rest of the wedding. He tried to lighten my mood, exaggerating the funny parts, and I tried to laugh, but the drumming was worse now than ever before. He scowled again when he saw my facial expression. We arrived back in Italy and were immediately ushered into a car and off to get a professional to look at me. Originally, we had scheduled this to be two days after the wedding, but because of recent... circumstances, Dino had it moved up, so I could be checked up on immediately.<p>

About an hour or so later, Dino, Romario and I waited in the almost stark white room for my results. I laid on the bench table thing that they have in the rooms, covering my eyes with my arm, the drumming still sounding as strong as ever. Dino leaned against the wall, a scowl still on his face, tapping his foot impatiently. Truthfully, a pissed off worried Dino can be terrifying. Romario stood at his side, completely calm. Dino and I jumped when the door opened. The poor guy was scared stiff when Dino grabbed him, in full boss mode.

"Well, what is it?" My brother demanded, holding the guy's shoulder with a little too much strength.

"W-Well," the man hastily flipped through the clip board he was holding. "We couldn't find anything wrong with her brain physically." Dino's eyes narrowed.

"Are you saying she's lying?" The man shook his head drastically.

"No, no, not at all! It's obvious that she is feeling pain!" The man quickly explained, gesturing to me for evidence. "It's just that... we can't find out what's causing it. It's not anything physical, and that's about all we know." Dino released his grip, causing the man to sigh in relief. I pushed myself up and titled my throbbing head, extremely confused. Well, I guess it was a good thing that nothing physical was causing it, but that still didn't help us much...

"What do you mean that nothing is causing it 'physically'?" Dino asked, voicing my next thought. The man flipped through a few more papers, calmer now that Dino was not clutching his shoulder anymore. He held up a picture for us to see.

"Physically, we can see nothing wrong, but there is has been an abundance of activity in the occipital lobe, the limbic lobe and the insular cortex. Other than that, there's nothing else really to say." Dino sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"So there's nothing else you guys can do to help my little sister?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Chiavarone. There's nothing else to do except to wait it out."

* * *

><p>Maybe it was thanks to my head ache that I heard the invisible assassins talking about killing my brother. I was using every sound to try to block out the head ache after it was a good thing that I had this drumming in my head, because without it, I would never of had kicked the spots were I heard the assassins, thus breaking their camouflage suits and revealing them. They were immediately tackled by the men nearby.<p>

"How is this possible?!" One of them wailed. "Verde said that nobody would be able to see us!" I groaned and clutched my head.

"Yeah, well you might want to try being quite next time you're plotting my brother's death," I informed them as I walked off, going to lay down.

Lay down, but not sleep. I hadn't slept since I had that horrifying nightmare.

* * *

><p>"Bel?"<p>

_"Ushishis, princess,"_ he greeted on the other side of the phone. There was a pause._ "You sound horrible. What's wrong with you?" _Of course he could tell something was wrong from just hearing me say his name.

"Listen, I really need to talk to Mammon," I said, not wanting to waste any time.

_"The baby? Why would you want to talk to him?"_

"Just get him, Bel," I snapped, irritated from lack of sleep. "If all goes well, I'll be seeing you soon enough anyway." I took the silence on the other end as confirmation that he was getting the illusionist.

_"What do you want?"_ A small voice said on the other end. Blunt and straight to the point as always.

"I need you to look into my head," I said, returning the favor of not beating around the bush. "I think something's wrong; I've been having horrible headaches all week and it feels like someone is literally trying to break into my head. You're the only one I know who might be able to do something about this." for a moment, when he didn't answer, I thought for sure that he was going to refuse, but he eventually spoke.

_"Come to the headquarters in the next hour. Don't keep me waiting."_ I heard a click as he ended the call. I sighed, relieved. Maybe I was finally going to get this head ache thing solved.

* * *

><p>Bel greeted me as I got out of the car, in front of the Varia HQ. He slung his arm around me as we walked up the steps.<p>

"Mammon told the prince of the princess's condition," he explained to me as he led me through the hallways to meet up with Mammon. "I always knew there was something wrong with your head, ushishi." I feebly flicked him off only causing more laughter.

"Hey, I'm friends with you, right?" I shot back weakly. Bel frowned.

"The princess wasn't lying when she said something's wrong after all," he mused. "Luckily, Mammon's good at these things." He opened a door and walked us into a living room or sorts. Mammon was sitting on the couch, waiting.

"About time you got here," he huffed. The frog on his head turned into a halo, and Mammon floated over to us. "Lay on the couch," he ordered. I complied and plopped onto the couch. Bel leaned over the back and Mammon floated over me. "Now, close your eyes. I need you to listen very carefully. I need you to clear your mind completely. You're going to feel a presence but try not to reject it." I nodded hesitantly and closed my eyes. I blocked everything else and cleared my mind, just as Fon taught me. It was difficult with the drumming, but I managed to do it for the most part.

I held myself back from lashing out when I felt an unfamiliar disturbance in my head. Yet, it was different than the drumming, which was forced and violent. This presences was careful and mindful, not trying to force its way in. I opened my eyes to find myself in the square room again, still covered in ice. I sniffed and looked up to see a tall cloaked figure. His hood covered the upper half of his face, but I could see light purple triangles on his cheeks and purple hair sticking out from beneath the hood.

"Mammon?" I sniffed, gazing up at him. He nodded and looked around. When I saw him nod, I felt more comfortable and safer with someone familiar. The ice retreated to where it only covered the walls.

"Hm. How strange. It took more effort than I thought to enter." Mammon kneeled down to look at me. "You have a very strange mind, Chiarvarone." I stared back at him, blankly. "It's almost like your mind wasn't fit for this world," he admitted. I raised my eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" Mammon stood back up and looked to wall where the drumming was coming from. I blinked, and clutched my head again. I had actually forgotten about it when I was focused on Mammon.

"It doesn't matter. I'm not interested in things like that," He brushed it off. "I'm only doing this so you owe me after all." I frowned and crossed my arms.

"That's not nice, Mammon!" He sighed at my behavior. I imagined that he was rolling his eyes under his hood. I winced and fell to my knees, clutching my head as another rather loud thud came from outside the wall. Mammon frowned. "Ah! Get out, burglar!" The ice returned to the floor, covering it completely this time. Mammon frowned and began floating so he was not touching the ground.

"Someone is trying to get in," he explained to me. "They're powerful too. Because your mind is so strange, it tries to reject any unknown presence. This happens in all minds, but yours is rather... violent. Even I had trouble getting in, and I wasn't forcing my way, like this other person is. Whoever they are however, this burglar as you call them, they are strong. It's amazing that you've lasted this long. If you hadn't come to me, and waited then the burglar would have eventually completely broken your mind." I shuddered at the thought. The air grew colder around me as I did this. Suddenly Mammon was in front of me and grabbed my shoulder.

"You need to control your emotions," He warned me. "This is your mind, so it reflects everything you feel and think. Right now, you're scared. You're the one making the ice. You need to control yourself." I nodded, determined and took a deep breath.

"Conceal, don't feel," I muttered reassuringly. The ice retreated back to the corner it had started from. I kept that ice there, still afraid that the snake would came back again. Mammon nodded in approval.

"Now, I can take down the barriers holding the burglar back," he noted, putting his hand on the wall. I looked away from the beating wall to stare at him in shock. "I can't stop them from doing this," he explained, "since it's your mind and I might damage it if we start fighting. Besides, I'm only here to stop the head ache, and after I remove the barrier you put up, it should stop. The bad part is that it will let this burglar into your mind. You can confront them later, but it's up to you." I stood up and walk over to the wall, despite the throbbing becoming worse each step I took.

"I won't see them now, will I?" I asked, a little nervous. My breath became visible as I said this.

"I can make so I'll be removing the barrier as soon as you wake up," Mammon assured me. "But you'll have to face them eventually." I hesitated, but I nodded. I calmed myself and turned back to Mammon. I was surprised to see he was not as tall as I previously thought. I looked down to see that I was my proper age once again.

"I'll deal with my burglar later," I said to the Varia's illusionist. "When I'm ready." Vines danced across the walls as I walked towards the center of the square room. Grass grew in my footsteps and the air became warmer.

"Okay. I'll take down the barrier now." Mammon held up his arms, but stopped, remembering something. "Remember, Cloud," he turned back to me, "this person is a powerful illusionist. When you confront him, remember that this is your mind." I nodded.

"Thanks you, Mammon." He snorted.

"Just remember, you're in my debt now, Chiavarone."

* * *

><p>I woke up to Bel poking my cheek. He let loose a Cheshire grin when he saw that I was awake.<p>

"Ushishi, about time you woke up, princess. The prince was getting bored just watching you sleep." I shooed him away from my face and looked up to see Mammon.

"Well?" I asked him.

"The barriers are down," he informed me, "but I didn't see who was trying to get in. They must have sensed my presence and left." I sighed, loving the feeling of the lack of drumming in my head.

"Oh, well. They'll no doubt be back later," I shrugged and pushed myself up from the couch, feeling rather elated at the moment, despite my lack of sleep. Eh, I'll just crash later when I get back home. "Right now, I need to get back and get some sleep." Bel frowned and leaned on the back of the couch, pouting.

"The prince is mad that the princess only came to see the baby and then leaves so quickly," He informed me, spinning his knife around to show his irritation. I waved him off.

"Stop pouting. We'll do something sometime soon. If you forgot, I haven't had sleep for the past week, and I'm eager to go home and catch up on it." I stuck my tongue out at him. He snorted, and left the room.

"Fine, but the prince gets to decided what we are doing."

I paled slightly, not exactly liking the idea of my best friend planning our activities.

* * *

><p>Truthfully, I think I fell asleep even before I hit the bed. I could kiss Mammon for what he did, but I knew that it came with consequences; I had to face the burglar that had been trying to get into my head. It was a scary thought, to face a dangerous stranger that actually had the power to get into peoples' heads, but at the same time, I wanted to face them because, quite frankly, I was pissed. I missed a week of sleep because of them. They were <em>sooo<em> going down.

I blinked as I woke up, gazing at the shimmering green canopy above me. I pushed myself up, feeling the soft tingling of grass beneath me. I took a sharp breath at the scene around me. It was a beautiful, vibrant garden, slightly resembling the one we had at the mansion. Well, it was like that one, but filled with a numerous amount of glorious plants and flowers, all of which my mother taught me the names of in my childhood. For a second, I forgot where I was and what I was doing. A voice startled me, pulling me out of my wonder.

"Kufufuf, well after all this time, it's a pleasure to meet the owner of this strange mind."

I whipped around and stared at the stranger who I immediately recognized.

"I'm Mukuro Rokudo, but," his eyes narrowed as a dangerous smile slipped onto his face, "you already knew that."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I REGRET NOTHING!**

**OK, I was planning to finish this off in a different way, but the temptation to put the cliff hanger was just too good to pass up, hehehe. Ah, be sure to review so I can know just how much I surprised you with the pineapple's appearance and how much you hate me for just leaving it off there. And who guessed that Mukuro had something to do with the head aches at the very beginning? I kind of gave it away when Mammon said it was a strong illusionist, but who got it then? And then who was completely blindsided? I'm wondering if any of you will connect this with something else I/Cloud mentioned in previous chapters. **

**It was nice writing Bel again, since I just LOVE him and Cloud together, but sadly, his part was small in this chapter, but they are going to see each other again. So, now Cloud has two 'dates'. **

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEW, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**


	20. Pineapples, Ferris Wheels and Desserts

**Chapter 20: Pineapples, Ferris Wheels and Desserts. Oh my!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR**

* * *

><p><strong>"People say I make strange choices, but they're not strange for me."<strong>

**-Johnny Depp**

* * *

><p>I let out a sharp breath. Frost sprang out from under my feet and covered the entire area, turning the once humid, sunny place into an iced sculpture. He raised an elegant eyebrow and stepped forward, making his way towards me.<p>

_"Idiot, idiot, idiot..." _Whispers filled the air, scolding me on my stupidity. Of course it was him. Who else was a powerful enough illusionist to do this? Why didn't I think of him sooner? _"Idiot, idiot, idiot..."_

"Oho? Looks like your mind is even more fragile than I thought, although I have to admit it was difficult to get into," he purred, sauntering closer to me. I blinked, then clenched my fist. I felt something cold in my hand in the next moment as anger swept through me. "But I'm curious to see just why your mind is s-" I threw the snowball, nailing him in the face. He froze mid-walk, and then wiped the snow from his face. His eye twitched but didn't give him a chance to react further.

"What the _cào_ is wrong with you, you_ g__ǒ__uz__ǎ__izi_! You can _g__ǔ__nk__ā__i_ for all I care, _ni__ǎ__o r__é__n_! I lost a week of sleep because of you! A whole week you _hùndàn_!" I stomped towards the illusionist, blowing up at him, fed up with this week. He back tracked as I kept going forward and put his arms up in defense, a surprised and awkward look on his face. He had not expected me to just start yelling at him.

"Oi, oi, calm down!" He tried to sooth my anger. As I walked the frost thawed beneath me. The temperature increased drastically, and we could feel the heat on our skin. Suddenly, flames erupted in columns around us. I stepped back in surprise. I was even more surprised when I stepped back to find no solid ground. I squeaked when we started falling down. Looking around wildly, I could see the sides of the hole flying past us. Mukuro clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"My, what an annoying situation. You have to learn to control your mind, child." A trident materialized in front of him. He grabbed the trident and pulled me towards his side with swift movements. As he drew me closer I saw the kanji in his eyes change. Suddenly, vines with lotus's covering them shot out from the trident, attaching to the walls of the hole and created a net to catch us. We bounced lightly on his makeshift net as we landed. I lay there, still squished to his side, shocked into silence and just really not knowing how to react. He took advantage of this opportunity.

"This won't do at all for a place to talk," he noted, idly pushing himself up. "I preferred our first scene much more than this one, don't you, child?" He turned to me, a sly smile on his face. I blinked, thinking of the garden I had woken up to. In another blink, we were back in that very same garden. Mukuro hummed in approval. "Much better." He rose and struck the ground with his trident. A throne made of the same vines that saved us earlier grew up from behind him just as he sat down. He titled his head and smirked in my direction. "Don't you want to sit too?" He waved his hand and a large lotus flower bloomed in front of him, forming a seat out of the petals. I numbly nodded and clambered up into my newly formed seat.

"Now that you are calm, I'd like to discuss some things with you," he started, leaning back and crossing his legs. "And during this, I'd prefer that you'd try to keep your emotions in check. You wouldn't want a repeat of what happened last time, would you?" I shook my head quickly, not wanting to make him angry again. There was a violent burst of wind as I did this. Mukuro sighed. "It looks you have no control at all." He shrugged. "Oh well, I'll just have to watch my steps. First things first, I suppose," he leaned forward, eyes gleaming, "How do you know who I am?"

"How do you know I know who you are?" I answered with a question. He frowned, apparently not liking my answer, or lack of answer. He glared down at me, suddenly seeming bigger than he was. A cold wind tore through the clearing as I cowered back. He paused, glancing up. A thoughtful look slid on his face, planning out his next words carefully. He seemed to realize that he had to go through the process of getting information out of me carefully, so it wouldn't end in utter chaos if my emotions got out of hand.

"I knew," he began, deciding it was best to answer my question, "that you recognized me and fully knew who I was, simply because of your facial expression." He then added as an afterthought, "Also, because this is your mind, child, that it's easy to see your emotions and feel the shock you felt when you recognized me." I mulled over his words, and then nodded in approval. Relief washed over me, and at first I was confused why I relieved. But as multiple flowers bloomed around us, I realized that I was relieved that he hadn't looked into my memories.

"Oh, I haven't even bothered with your memories yet," He scoffed. The flowers shut as my attention went back to him.

"What?"

"It was hard enough getting here in the first place," he snided, with a bit of anger and annoyance in his tone, "and memories are a whole other thing altogether." His statement didn't assure me. The flowers began withering at this point. He watched all this happen in amusement.

"Why are you here?" I demanded, getting angry again. He waved me off, in an attempt to calm me.

"Whoa there, child. No need to get fed up, now." I stood up.

"I am not a child!" He stood up and leaned back, the throne withering away to nothing and thrust his arm forward. I stepped back as a snake lunged out. My eyes widened as it came closer, but a grey mongoose shot out form the side, colliding with the snake and taking it down. I watched as the mongoose snapped the snake's neck with its jaws. I blinked, realizing that I had made the mongoose appeared, it being the first thing coming to my mind when I saw the snake.

"You look like a child to me." I turned, almost running into the illusionist's hip. He grabbed my arm and forcibly tugged me upwards until I was almost looking him in the face. My feet dangled limply, not even close to reaching the ground. My lip quivered as I met his intense gaze. His eyes narrowed at my reaction. I started sniffing, feeling much like I was two-years old. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was two again. He frowned, seeing me on the edge of tears.

"Now, now, let's not start this again." I hiccuped in response. "Stop that." He scowled when I didn't react to his words. He sighed, and put his free hand on his forehead. He placed me on the ground and bent down to my level. "See? I put you down." I miserably sniffed and wiped my nose. He smirked and poked me in the forehead. "I told you were a child." I frowned and scrambled after him as he walked off. He stopped and leaned against a tree, arrogantly smirking down at me.

"I am not a child. I'm 14!" I chided up at him defiantly. He raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? And what's your name?" I was about to respond, but then I realized what he was doing. He was tricking me. Suddenly he wasn't so tall anymore.

"Why are you here?" I asked firmly, pleased to hear my normal 14 year old voice. He tilted his head, still smirking.

"I happened to be strolling through my illusions when I noticed a strange presence. When it wouldn't let me easily enter, I took it as a challenge. Usually, only strong illusionist can put up blocks like this, but you could say I'm..." he looked off, as if trying to find a word. Giving his sly smile, he continued, "pleasantly surprised that it was a seemly normal girl's mind. An extraordinary mind, at that." He admitted, looking around again. "Extraordinary, and other worldly." I put my hand on my hip and gazed at him warily. He eyed me suspiciously, a mischievous glint shimmering in his eyes.

"You're not supposed to be here." My eyebrows collided. "And you know it." A million things whirled through my mind as he said this, producing a tornado of wind around us. I managed to calm my thoughts and subdue the wind. He clapped sarcastically, still leaning against the tree. I glared at him, then I grew red when I realized I wasn't wearing anything. He chuckled, realizing the source of my embarrassment. He waved is hand and I was suddenly clad in a white dress. I crossed my arms, clearly unimpressed.

"What do you mean by that?" I tried, getting us back on subject. He scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"Your mind doesn't fit in this world," he explained simply, "which is the reason why it immediately tried to reject my presence. Although I was surprised when the blocks disappeared and even more surprised when I felt another illusionist. It seems like it's easier to enter your mind when you let them. I'll be sure to remember that for future preference." He drawled, his ever remaining smirk still plastered on his face. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Future Preference?" He nodded, and yawned.

"I'm willing to put forth some effort to solve this mystery of course," He said, pushing himself off of the tree. "After all, we both know you're hiding something… or things." He shrugged. "As long as I find out eventually. I had better nothing to do until things start getting exciting." I titled my head.

"So, you plan on coming back?"

"And be sure to let me in without any trouble," he ordered, not looking back. A door materialized in front of him. "It was rather tiring, forcing my way in after all." I bristled at the command. He laughed at my reaction. I waved him off.

"Fine, fine. Just make sure you don't give me any more headaches in the future?" He turned back to me, his hand on the door knob.

"Oh? What's this? Even knowing who I am and you're completely content with me coming back?" I shrugged, a small smile slipping on my face.

"You're the only person I can really tell anyway." He raised an eyebrow at my vague response.

"Kufufufu, I'll be sure to come back then, child." And with that, he opened the door and left. I blinked.

"I'm not a child!" I shot up in bed. Blinking in surprise, I took in my surroundings. Oh, yeah. I was in my room. I rubbed my eyes and looked at the clock, scowling when I noticed it was 4 in the morning. I moaned and fell back into the bed, putting a pillow over my head.

Turns out that when I was talking to Mukuro, I wasn't getting any rest.

"Stupid pineapple..." I muttered. I shuddered violently, somehow getting the feeling that I was going to get punished for saying that later.

* * *

><p>I skipped throughout the halls happily, now headache free. Sure, the weird, crazy, insane illusionist was in my head and could get in any time he basically wanted, but hey! No more splitting headaches! Although...<p>

I stopped and leaned and against the wall, hand on chin, deep in thought. Should I really tell him? Tell him everything? How I was from another world, and I know things that I shouldn't. That I know a possible future and that I was trying to change it. If I do tell him, it could be beneficial to me; I doubt I could do everything I needed to do on my own and he could counsel me and help me. Then again, he could very well use me and my knowledge for his own gain. I frowned, mulling over my dilemma.

I was extremely desperate to tell him. I know I wanted, needed, someone to believe me, and just listen. Mukuro might, no he would believe me. Right now, he was my only option. I had actually plan to try to communicate with him with these same hopes later, but he surprised me with his early appearance. I sighed, making up my mind. I had my resolve and I was going to stick to it, no matter how stupid my choice is. I just needed someone right now, before I go completely insane.

"Why if it isn't my favorite little Chiavarone," a voice chided, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked up smiling, recognizing the voice.

"Why if it isn't my favorite ninth generation lightning guardian," I answered back, walking up to him. He laughed and ruffled my hair. I peeked around him to look at Bouche, giving him a smile as well. The dark man smiled back, dipping his head slightly.

"Miss Cloud," he acknowledged.

"Mr. Bouche," I answered back politely. I turned back to Ganauche.

"So is the Ninth visiting again?" I tilted my head, questioning their appearance. He nodded.

"We were actually sent to go find you. The boss wants you to join them while he's here," Ganauche grabbed my shoulders and began steering me back the way they had come.

"He tasked me with finding you," Bouche corrected his comrade dryly. "He just tagged along." Ganauche huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Not my fault that I haven't seen the brat in a while," he rebuked, slinging his arm around my shoulder as we walked. "Unlike you lot, she actually brings a little fun into our dull lives." I laughed at his response. Ganauche and Bouche were my favorite out of the ninths guardians. They would often accompany the ninth when he visited and would even play with me when I was little. As I grew, we began talking more instead of playing and I formed a good relationship with them.

Ganauche was the youngest out of the guardians, so he enjoyed playing with me as a kid the most. The mist guardian just enjoyed my company. We often went into deep discussion over theories and books (he too had a love for reading and we would often be found in the library, boring Ganauche to death with our talks). He admitted to me one time that he was surprised I had approached him so easily as a child because of his strange and intimidating appearance. I just shrugged it off and labeled him as interesting. He had laughed at this.

Coyote Nougat had also came with the ninth in his visits, but had always stayed at his boss's side. I always took the storm guardian as a serious type, so I never expected him to associate himself with a child anyway. He was scary at times, however. Ganauche simply brushed it off saying "that's just how the old coot is" and left it there. Either way, I had a good relationship with the ninth's guardians and the ninth himself had always been like a grandfather to me.

"Ah, Cloud! I'm glad you go join us." I smiled shyly up at the ninth and took the seat he gestured to. Bouche and Ganauche took the other two empty seats at the table. I looked away from Coyote's usual stern gaze, and met Dino's eyes. I narrowed my own, noticing he looked a bit upset about something.

"I really don't think she needs to be here for this, Ninth," my brother sighed. Ah, so that's it. He's trying to shelter me from... something. Hmph. The ninth waved him off.

"It's fine, Dino. After all, I want her opinion since she has spent time with the boy." I raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, knowing they'd explain it to me soon enough.

"Cloud, I assume you're familiar with Gokudera Hayato, yes?" I nodded.

"Tsunayoshi's friend. Gokudera wants to be Tsuna's right-hand man," I elaborated, hiding the nervous feeling I was getting from this. The ninth nodded, hand on chin, a thoughtful and worried look on his face.

"Yes, and to tell the truth, I'm a little worried. Due to his past actions, I'm a little suspicious of his loyalty to Tsunayoshi. I wanted to get your opinion on him since you have spent time with him recently and might know him better on a personal level." I mulled over his words, biting my lower lip, choosing my next words carefully. Although I would like to say that Gokudera was harmless, from a mafia point of view, this was a very dangerous and delicate situation.

"You have good reasons to be suspicious," I started. "He has a bad temper and is prone to violence," I paused, "however he has never shown any aggression or acted violent towards Tsunayoshi. Still, if you feel the need to test him, you should." I finished, then added, "Just to be safe." The old man nodded again, taking my words into consideration. Dino caught my eyes from his seat, sending me a proud look. I resisted the urge to stick my tongue out at him. Right, I have to be professional in front of the mafia boss.

"Very well," the ninth muttered after a while. "Then I will go through with the plan I had discussed with you earlier." A dark look passed over his face. "Remember, if he shows up, kill him." Dino nodded with a blank, serious face. I too, kept a poker face, not reacting to his words. I guess it's just a mafia thing. The ninth smiled, lightening the mood again. "Now, thank you for hospitality, but we really must be going now." He patted my arm and rose, motioning for his guardians to follow. Dino rose and followed him out the door. Coyote didn't even give me a second glance, but Bouche patted me on the shoulder as a goodbye, and Ganauche ruffled my hair again. My earlier professional mode gone, I couldn't help but to stick my tongue out at him. He snickered as he left, leaving me alone at the table.

I caught up with Dino later that day. He had a complicated expression on his face. I approached him and reached up to poke his cheek.

"You look constipated," I informed him bluntly. He let a small smile slip and rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, 'sis. Always cheering me up." He sighed and returned to his earlier mood. "If he comes, I'm helping him escape overseas." He informed me. My expression didn't change.

"You're going to disobey the ninth to help him?" Dino shrugged.

"I'm not just going to kill one of Tsuna's friends like that." I smiled at his reason.

"You're a good big brother, Dino." He shrugged and ran his hand through his hair.

"I don't know about that, Cloud."

* * *

><p>Mukuro Rokudo was let out a small chuckle as he entered the girl's mind for the second time. He gazed around the area and was pleasantly surprised to see that she wasn't in the garden yet. He shrugged. More time for him to snoop after all. It was fascinating, he had to admit to himself, how different and messed up the child's mind was. Other worldly, he had described it, but that was only for lack of better words. The only way he could describe it is that this mind did not belong here; an improper fit, and that, along with the girl's lack of control over her emotions in her head, lead to a very dangerous mind.<p>

"Kufufufu, how fun~" Although, there was also a familiar feeling, a connection almost. He couldn't place it. She had told him that he was the only person she could tell something to, as if he could understand something no one else could. He had been playing with the idea that she had been reincarnated to, but dismissed it; this girl hadn't experienced death. Although the connection was still there. It frustrated him, but he knew he had to take his time getting it out of her. He couldn't have a repeat of last time. After all, he didn't want to find out if he could become trapped in another person's mind, especially one as bizarre as hers. He could wait. It seemed like she was going to tell him something interesting soon enough anyway.

He paused in his stroll, his eyes landing on one of the many vibrant flowers in the garden. Although he had told the girl that it was too much trouble to mess with her memories, the truth was that he hadn't tried it yet. His sly smiled returned. Well, he supposed that now was a good time to experiment. He hesitated before he touched the petals. Should he really be doing this? For some odd reason the girl seemed to be unafraid of him, and seemed to trust him to some extent. He dismissed these thoughts. She was hiding something, and it was only a matter of time until he found out what. His hand brushed the petals.

A burning pain shot up his arm. He shot back, scowling and clutching his arm as darkness enveloped the garden, leaving him floating in a dark space. His squinted his eyes as light came into the dark plane. He blinked warily and was surprised to find himself standing in a room. From the looks of it, it seemed to be a teenage girl's bedroom. He looked towards the bed to see who he presumed to be the owner of the room, sprawled out on it and reading a book. Manga, he corrected himself when he drew closer for further inspection. She flipped over, letting out a squeal, startling him.

"Mukuro is so cool!" She squealed, and hugged the manga. His eyebrows shot up at the mention of his own name. A muffled voice sounded through the closed door. The girl huffed in annoyance and pushed herself up off the bed. "I can't hear you!" She shouted as she stomped out of the room, passing right through Mukuro. As the door slammed shut, Mukuro grabbed the book from off the bed, surprised to find the words in English. He flipped through the book until he came upon a picture. A shiver passed through him when he noticed that the character in the book looked and acted just like him.

"What the _cào _are you doing here?" He whipped around at the sound of the enraged voice to find the owner of the mind he was in. His eyes narrowed and he held up the book.

"What is this?" he asked coolly, but there was venom in his voice. A crack erupted in the wall when she clenched her fist.

"You couldn't just wait? I was going to tell you tonight anyway!" She snatched the book out of his hands. He resisted the urge to step back. More cracks appeared in the room, some caving in to show the darkness he had been in before.

"What do you mean you were going to tell me? Tell me what exactly?" He materialized his trident, and leaned forward. Her eyes widened and he smirked. He had succeeded in gaining the dominant role in the relationship again. The cracks stopped suddenly. She let out a heavy sigh and turned around, hugging her arms. She began to step forward and each step made a ripple, slowly bringing back the serene garden much to his pleasure. He held back his impatience. If this were in the real world, he would have easily forced it out of the girl by this point, but this was her mind, her territory. He had to tread lightly and be patient to get what he wanted.

"It's a long story," she breathed out finally, turning back around to face him. A gentle, warm wind blew through the garden. He hummed thoughtfully. It was strange. It seemed like the girl was eager to tell him, but at the same time, her common sense was trying to hold her back. He smirked and struck the ground, bringing back their seats from earlier.

"No need to worry about time, child," he gestured to her seat as he took his own. "It's your mind after all." She sighed and sat down, seeming to have come to a conclusion. The plants whispered around them, their voices becoming a confused, jumbled mess. She met his eyes, and they died down immediately.

"Well, first off, I should tell you that I know about the whole you dying thing and reincarnating and stuff like that," she started off, a little nervously. He narrowed his eyes. Her own eyes widened and she waved her hands in an attempt to calm him. The air grew colder around them. "I'll explain, I'll explain! Just," she twiddled with her fingers nervously, "Try not to react or do anything until I'm done, okay?" He eyed her, mulling over her words.

"I'll allow it," he concluded, waving his hand. She sighed in relief, bringing the warm temperature back.

"Okay, that's a start." She ran her hand threw her hair, organizing her next words carefully. "The reason I brought that up is to point out the reason why I think you will believe my story. And, frankly, there's only one other person I can think of that will believe it." A white dragon gracefully glided into the garden above their heads and exited just as quickly. Mukuro looked up, a bit startled, but she didn't seem to notice. "As you said, I'm not supposed to be here. You're right, of course. I'm not exactly… from this world...?" she struggled with her words. Mukuro kept a blank face, keeping to his promise not to comment till the end.

"I come from a world, a lot like this one. Except, there's something different. You see, this world would be considered... fictional in my world." She glanced at his face. His eyes narrowed, but he allowed her to continue. "In my world, my old world in my old body, the one you saw in the memory," he could tell she wanted to add 'the one you weren't supposed to be in', but she kept the comment back, "There was this manga series that I liked. Like, liked a lot." He frowned, not seeing how this was relevant. "I was a bit of a dreamer, and I had always dreamed of living in that manga." She laughed nervously, a little embarrassed to be admitting that.

"I really didn't expect that dream to come true any time soon." His eyebrows shot up, beginning to piece things together. She seemed to notice this. "Long story short, my family went on a hike, I fell of a ledge, almost died, but didn't die thanks to a bush, and found a shiny automatic door at the bottom of a deserted canyon." His eyebrows collided and he tried to make sense of her words. She didn't give him a chance to muddle through the mess she was throwing at him. "I entered the door and found a control room of sorts, searched my own soul and ended up screwing around to where I would be reborn in this world..." she paused, gauging whether she should actually say her next words. She sighed. "This world, as in the world of my favorite manga." Mukuro shot up out of his seat, trident in hand. He swung it around so that the tip was at her throat.

"Are you telling me that this world is just fictional? That it is just made up by some person?" He hissed. She gulped, and shook her head slowly, causing the cold to return.

"I don't see it as just being 'made up'. I think that the manga was just telling this world's story, so nobody was controlling it, just recording it." He kept his unwavering glare on her. He tilted his head, and put his trident down, returning to his throne. He was a little disappointed in himself for overreacting, but he supposed that anybody would if given the same information so abruptly. She breathed out a shaky sigh, her visible breath churning in the air. "This world is as real as my world," she stated sadly. "I was a fool to come here not even bothering not to think that. All worlds are real and they have real people." She shook her head. "Look, back to the point, I was 'reborn' into this new world, but I didn't exactly... die? I kind of skipped that part." Mukuro let a soft chuckle escape his lips, startling her.

"Ah, that explains it. It was obvious that you hadn't experienced death before, yet the effects of the reincarnation still linger in your mind," he chuckled, finding this girl to be more and more amusing. She stared at him in shock.

"... you're okay with this?" He scoffed at her question.

"Of, course. You said it yourself. I have been reincarnated before, so this kind of thing isn't new to me. However," he leaned forward, a glint in his eye, "The fact that you knew that about me means that I was a character in the manga that holds information about our world. What else do you know, child?" She lifted her chin, putting on a brave face.

"A lot," she admitted. "I guess you could say that I know the future, but that wouldn't be exactly right. What I know is an unstable future, an outline, one that can change instantly, but that doesn't mean that all my information is useless." He smiled, leaning back confidently in his throne.

"Kufufu, so you can be of use to me after all." She narrowed her eyes.

"In a way...I suppose, but I can't tell you everything." He frowned at this.

"I'm sorry, but you're acting like you have a choice in the matter." She frowned and crossed her arms.

"Need I remind you whose mind are we in right now, huh?" He laughed.

"As I would think you would already know, I am a master illusionist," He lifted his arms and columns of fire erupted around them. "I don't think you can stop me from getting what I want." She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply.

"This is my mind," she muttered, letting out a breath. Ice trailed up the columns, freezing them. Mukuro lifted an eyebrow. She opened her eyes, green meeting red and blue. "And besides, I need your help anyway, so I'm going to tell you some things."

"Hm? Why so eager to give out important information?" She shrugged.

"You're all I have," she answered simply. He snorted at this. He smiled as a thought entered his head.

"So, who was the protagonist of this story you know so much about? Was it me?" She shook her head.

"No. Quite the opposite actually; you're the first antagonist." He placed a hand on his chin.

"Kufufufu, I suppose that fits me more. But," he stood and towered over her, "what exactly do I benefit from 'helping' you as you want me to do." She gazed up at him with a black expression.

"I'll help you get… something important back when you lose it," she chirped. He blinked, but hid his confusion. He really should just expect her to know things at this point. She cocked her head thinking. "Well, you're in prison right now, right? Or have you broken out yet?" He held back the urge to pick the girl up and demand to know how she knew that, because he was already aware of how she knew that.

"What do you mean, when I lose it? Lose what?" She blinked.

"Oh. Top secret, can't tell you know." He scowled at her answer, but let it slide.

"I suppose I'll play along for now," he said, smirking and looking around the garden. "What's your name anyway?" She hesitated before answering, but decided it would be better than him to continue calling her 'child'.

"Cloud," she answered. He snorted.

"Please. Nobody has a ridiculous name like that. Now, tell me your real name." She stared at him, offended.

"That is my real name." His eyes widened when he realized she wasn't lying. There was a pause, then he doubled over laughing.

"Kufufufufu! What a ridiculous name!" She crossed her arms and glared at him, unamused.

"Oh, and your hair cut is better?" He froze and whipped around to face her. Realizing her mistake she scrambled back, shrinking into a child. He grabbed her arm and yanked her up.

"That reminds me," he sneered, "I need to punish you for your comment earlier and what you just said now." Her eyes widened and she squirmed. Snakes slithered out of his sleeve and wrapped around the girl, causing more distress.

"Stop, stop! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Stop!" He released her as a giant mongoose lunged at him from out of the bushes, hitting him square in the chest and knocking him down. The animal hissed at him and bounded off again. He pushed himself up and glared at the now 14 year old girl again.

"That was uncalled for." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"You should really stop using snakes to scare me," she retorted. He huffed and got up, a door materializing in front of him again. "Wait, you're leaving?" Cloud got up and ran to him. He chuckled and ruffled her hair, causing her throw her head back, not amused by his action.

"I think that's enough excitement for today, _Cloud_," he explained, putting emphasis on her name. An almost desperate look came on her face.

"You're coming back... right?" He stared at her carefully, then put a sly smile on his face.

"Of course," he purred. He gave a mock bow and sauntered out the door.

Of course he would come back. Cloud had proven herself to be a useful tool to him. But for now he had some research to do.

* * *

><p>"You're insane."<p>

"Shishishi, I prefer the term genius."

"This is all your fault."

"I wasn't putting the blame on you, princess."

"Oh, I know. I was just pointing out the obvious." I huffed, and dared to look down, pressing my fingers against the glass. "They're still looking," I informed him. He scowled and joined me in looking down. At the start of this, I actually had hopes that this would be a normal, fun day (despite Bel being the one that planned it). Well, as normal as hanging out with Bel could be. We went to Mirabilandia and planned to spend the day at the amusement park. We had not planned, however for assassins to be after Bel. The bad part was that he didn't know who they were or where they were form. So much for being called a genius.

I managed to convince him to lose them in the crowd, and not kill them in front of a bunch of families trying to have fun like us. So, off we went, but they were persistent in following. Bel ended up dragging us on the Eurowheel, a 300ft Ferris wheel, which is where we were at the moment.

"I'll just kill them," he concluded. I sighed, but knew I couldn't stop him.

"Let's just wait until they make a move," I suggested, sad that our fun day has ended.

"Looks like they're already moving, princess," Bel noted. I looked down surprised to see that they were agilely jumping on the Ferris wheel, making their way to us. I winced as the window shattered next to me, thanks to Bel's knives. Bel scooped me up and jumped on the ledge. "Going down, princess~" Even if I had time to argue before he jumped out of the gondola, I wouldn't have. By this point, I knew there was no arguing with my insane best friend. He scaled the metal bars easily and we reached the ground in no time. I barely had time to dive behind a building nearby to avoid the bullets they were now shooting at us.

Screams and panic erupted around us as soon as people realized that it was gun fire. Ignoring this, I brought at my gun as Bel prepared his knives, a wide grin on his face. I groaned.

"_Cào_! I only brought one gun!" I complained.

"Ushishi, you should have been more prepared," Bel teased. I glared at him.

"_Bi zui_!" I flipped him the bird. Bel chuckled.

"I'll take out the gunman," he decided, twirling his knife. "You keep the other one occupied." Leaving no room for refusal he jumped off, disappearing instantly. Making sure my gun was loaded, I ran around the corner, trusting that Bel was taking care of the shooter. The man smirked confidently and came at me head on. I ducked his punch easily, but was surprised when a blade popped out of his sleeve when he swung at me from below. I managed to push myself back in time, but got a small cut on my cheek.

I flipped back, putting distance in between us. He revealed his other hidden blade, smirking confidently. I narrowed my eyes, trying to figure out a reason for his confidence. There wasn't anything special that happened in our first encounter but... My eyes widened as my hand went to the small cut on my cheek. His smile widened. I jumped back as another man smashed a bat into the place I was standing. I backed up slowly, taking in the new numbers that had arrived. I sighed and slipped into my ginga, really hoping that whatever poison that was on that blade wasn't fast acting.

* * *

><p>Bel was annoyed. Not only was an entire family after his head, but they weren't weak either. Nothing a prince couldn't handle of course. He was cutting down opponents left and right, naturally. Although, their numbers slowed him down and their use of team work didn't help. Yet, he couldn't help but wonder about his princess, and how she was holding up. He could only hope that she wasn't having to deal with the same number as him. And he was getting bored. He was starting to muse with the idea of actually putting more effort into this...<p>

"Prince the Ripper!" A voice rang out as soon as he sliced the neck of the man in front of him. His opponents backed off, clearing the way for who Bel had presumed to be the leader. Bel let out a snicker and readied his knives. They were just making it easy for him. "We have your comrade!" The man roughly held up, much to Bel's surprise, Cloud. He narrowed his eyes, taking the lack of wounds on her body. From what he could see, there were only a few cuts. He pieced it together immediately. The princess wouldn't go down that easy of course.

"How pathetic," He sneered, "Of course weak peasants like you would resort to paralyzing poison and hostages." This only made the group angrier. Bel frowned as the man whipped out a knife and cupped Cloud's face harshly, holding the blade under her eye.

"I wonder if your opinion will change once I gorge out your friend's pretty little eye here. She'll just have to pay for what you did to us. How dare you kill our boss!" Bel scratched the back of his head thoughtfully, trying to remember the last time he assassinated a boss. He shrugged drawing a blank. Doesn't matter anyway, he decided, all he had to do now was save his princess. Suddenly, someone ran out from behind Bel, anger boiling inside of him. He smashed a bat into the prince's head before he was taken down by knives. Bel wavered, clutching his head as a small sliver of blood trickled down onto his hand.

He lifted it in fascination, a bone chilling smile on his face.

"The blood of royals! I see it~"

* * *

><p>It was a one sided massacre. Knives impaled the man that was holding me up, and I dropped to the ground, my body still paralyzed and twitching when I tried to move. Blood splattered on my face, off Bel's wire that took care of the poor guy who tried to pick me back up. For a while, a very short while, all I could do was watch as Bel took down the entire family, using genius tactics and his razor sharp wires, laughing maniacally the entire time. He looked completely elated taking the lives of those around him. It took more blood splashing on my face to get me to close my eyes. I only dared to open them once the screams of agony had died down and the night took on a deathly quiet. I opened my eyes to see Bel sauntering carelessly towards me, bodies lying all around. He leaned down and waved a vial of liquid in my face.<p>

"Isn't it great, princess?" He asked me, grinning widely and throwing his arms up, ignoring the fact that blood was splattered all over him. "I got the antidote for you!" He propped my body up and lifted the vial to my lips, forcing me to drink it. He then scooped me up and began to carry me out of the amusement park.

"See? I told you we would have fun today~"

* * *

><p>Bel frowned, leaning on the back of his seat in the jet, gazing at me. He walked over and poked my cheek. My eye twitched.<p>

"Are you mad, princess?" I sighed and rolled over, facing away from him. His frown deepened. He leaned on the edge my seat and poked my side instead. I sighed.

"Should you really be using the Varia's private jet for this?" I asked, attempting to change the subject. He waved me off nonchalantly.

"It's not like the Commander will know." He poked me again. I rolled over to face him, irritated.

"What I want to know is why my princess is mad at me." I sighed, and pushed myself up, running a hand through my hair.

"...I just forget you're an assassin sometime, Bel," I explained. "That's all. I'm not mad at you or anything." Bel snorted.

"That's all? It's just what I do." I eyed him warily, a question forming out of curiosity.

"But why do you do it?" I asked, leaning forward. He snickered and held up his arms.

"Because I'm a prince, that's why." I sighed and accepted his bizarre reasoning.

That's just the way he was, and it was easy to forget how blood thirsty and ruthless he could be. Yet, he was still my best friend.

Prince the Ripper indeed.

* * *

><p>I woke up in my mind garden, and stood up, only to be cornered by Mukuro against the tree.<p>

"You didn't tell me that you were related to the Chiavarone boss, _Little Chiavarone_," he purred, his eyes narrowing.

"I see you did some research," I chirped, already predicting this outcome. Seeing my lack of fear he released me and stepped back.

"I despise the mafia, but I suppose you already know that." I nodded in confirmation. "Speaking of you knowing things," he leaned on the tree, looking down on me. "Tell me how the first arc goes. The one where I'm the villain specifically." I hummed.

"You know I can't specifically tell you, right?" Truthfully, I was waiting until after Mukuro was defeated to start telling him a lot of things. He raised an eyebrow.

"Then why not a summary, hm?" I sighed, knowing that he was going to get it out of me one way or another. Besides, I had somewhat planned for this.

"Someone really strong is going to challenge you and beat you," I vaguely summarized. He snorted.

"Please. I'll just be sure to be careful when I do run into someone strong. Everyone has a weakness after all," he explained. Good, his overconfidence was working to my advantage. His eyes lit up, thinking of an idea. "And you would happen to know that weakness, wouldn't you?" My eyes widened as he stalked forward. I pushed one thought out of my mind and threw another one in, focusing on that and really hoping that this would work.

Sakura bloomed all around us, showering our figures with their petals. Mukuro stopped his pursuit and looked up, tilting his head.

"Sakura, hm? I do vaguely remember there being a disease existing where someone can't stand around Sakura...so this strong person is weak to Sakura." he looked to me and took my silent glare as confirmation. He smirked and turned to leave, giving a small wave.

"That's all I needed from you today, Little Chiavarone. I'll be becoming quite busy soon, but I'll be sure to check in." He slammed the door shut and I let out a relieved sigh. Luckily, it wasn't hard to focus on Hibari instead of Tsuna.

He was way hotter after all.

* * *

><p>"Of course all the expenses will be paid by us," I assured him, sipping the tea he had offered me. Tsuyoshi Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, laughing.<p>

"Italy! Wow! I didn't expect you to invite my son to come over there when you walked in," he admitted. "I'm completely fine with it, but are you sure it's not going to bother you guys" I waved him off.

"Not at all. It'll be fun for him. He's never been right?"

"Of course not! He's never been out of Japan before." The bell chimed and we turned to see the baseball player himself walk in. His eyes widened when he saw me.

"Cloud? You didn't tell me you were back!" He set his baseball bag down and walked over to us, ruffling my hair as usual when he reached me. "So what's up?" Yamamoto's father smiled knowingly and I slipped a sly smirk onto my face.

"I believe," I said, turning to look up at Yamamoto, "That I owe you a date." He tilted his head and scratched his chin, the smile remaining on his face.

"Huh?" My smirk turned into a fill out smile.

"How would you like to go to Italy, Yamamoto?"

* * *

><p><strong><span>Omake: Save the Princess!<span>**

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a young prince in the Vongola kingdom. This prince's name was Tsuna. Prince Tsuna was supposed to become king of the Vongola Kingdom one day, but because of his lack of talent and motivation, he did not want to become king. To fix this problem, the current Vongola king got his good friend, the great Wizard Reborn to tutor Tsuna and shape him into becoming a great king.

"You must train harder to become the tenth king of the Vongola, Tsuna," the wizard informed him while hurtling magic fire balls at his student for 'training' purposes.

"HOW DOES THIS HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH BEING A KING?!" The prince yelled back, squealing as he dove for cover.

"Oh, come on, Tsuna!" the prince's rain knight, Yamamoto called from the side. "It's not that bad!"

"You're doing great tenth!" yelled Gokudera, his storm knight.

"Prince, I have some EXTREMELY bad news!" the sun knight Ryohei burst into the room. "The King of Chiavarone is here and needs our help!"

"How is that bad news?" Tsuna asked, brushing himself off and rising.

"He says that the princess of the Chiavarone has been kidnapped!"

"WHAT!"

"Yes, I'm afraid it's true, Prince Tsuna," Dino, the king of the neighboring Chiavarone Kingdom said, walking into the room with his loyal knight Romario following. "My sister, Princess Cloud has been kidnapped by the prince of the Namimori kingdom, Prince Hibari."

"HEEIH! That really scary guy!" Dino nodded sadly.

"I need you to go rescue her," the king continued. "I'm too busy running my kingdom at the moment."

"WHAT? WHY ME!" Reborn hit his student with his staff.

"This will make you a better king, Prince Tsuna. So it's up to you and your knights to save the princess."

**_Meanwhile, in Namimori Castle:_**

The beautiful princess let out an 'umph' as she was thrown from the Prince's shoulder onto the ground. She puffed her cheeks, glaring at the prince. He ignored her and walked out to his throne room balcony. She stomped after him.

"This is insane!" she pointed an accusing finger at the prince, "I'll never marry someone who kidnaps me! Never!" She threw hand up, resting it on her forehead and closed her eyes dramatically. Hibari looked back at her blankly.

"Who said anything about marrying?"

"Huh?" She opened her eye, peeking out at the prince. "Wait, wait, wait! Isn't that the reason you kidnapped me?" She crossed her arm and raised an elegant eyebrow. The prince scoffed.

"I only kidnapped you so I could fight strong people when they came to rescue you. I have no intentions of marrying," he explained, turning back to look at the horizon, waiting for his opponents. Princess Cloud's eye twitched, offended by his aloofness.

"So, are you saying that you don't want to marry me?"

"Yes," was his simple response. She threw her arms up.

"But I'm totally marryable! The in only reason a prince would kidnap me would be to marry me!" Hibari rolled his eyes and turned to face her.

"Go to the west tower and wait to be rescued before I drag you up there," he commanded. She stomped her foot.

"Not until you admit you want to marry me! I'm totally marryable!" She cried defiantly. Prince Hibari huffed and hefted the girl over his shoulder again, taking her to the tower. He threw her into the room and locked the door. She banged her fists on it form the other side.

"Don't just use me as bait! Marry me dammit!"

**_Back with Tsuna and his knights, preparing for their epic journey_**

"I'd like to thank you for doing this, Prince Tsuna," King Dino said compassionately. "Please bring my sister back safely." The prince sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, I'm only doing this because Princess Cloud is my friend," he gave a pointed look to Reborn, "and not because I'm going to be the next Vongola King!" His rain knight patted his shoulder, calming him down.

"It's ok, Tsuna. We'll definitely save the princess!"

"Yeah!" Gokudera exclaimed, "as long as the tenth is leading us, we can conquer anything!"

"This is going to be an EXTREME journey!" The sun knight pumped his fist. The young lightening knight put his hands on his hips and laughed confidently.

"Guhahaha! Lambo is invincible!" Tsuna sighed and looked at his rag tag band of knights.

"I guess we better get going…" he muttered miserably. And so the Vongola Prince, the tutor wizard, and the 4 knights set off on their journey to save Princess Cloud, unaware of the three trials they must over overcome.

**_The first trial: The Magic Mage Mukuro!_**

Our brave heroes were now off on their journey, entering the mystical swamp first. The wizard Reborn led the way, holding the map and gazing at it intently. Prince Tsuna unwillingly trudged behind his tutors, his knights right behind him. Yamamoto looked around, noticing the weather.

"Wow, it's really misty, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Tsuna agreed, numbly hugging himself and rubbing his shoulder, "It's creepy." The prince jumped, screaming when he felt something latch onto his leg.

"Tenth!" Gokudera pushed through his fellow knights to check on his beloved prince.

"It's okay, Gokudera!" his prince waved him off shakily. "It's just Lambo." He pointed to the sniveling child clinging to his leg.

"Stupid cow! You're not worthy to be a knight!" The storm knight grabbed Lambo's fro, ripping the child away from the prince.

"The great and powerful Lambo got scared!" He cried, tears and snot running down his face. A chuckled leaked through the mist, startling the group. They immediately huddled together, the knights drawing their weapons.

"Kufufuf... you should be scared." The mist thickened around them, causing Tsuna and Lambo to freak out anymore. Suddenly, figured appeared out the mist in front of them. A man with indigo hair and heterochromatic eyes headed the group. Behind him was a dog-human-werewolf-thing, a jester-girl with a jingly hat and a flute, a squire-looking-beggar-man with a hood and glasses, and a witch with purple hair and an eye patch. In all, it was a very odd looking group.

"Hey!" The dog boy barked up at the sky. "Who are you calling odd?"

"Ken, don't yell at the narrator," the squire warned him wisely.

"Oh! So you call him wise?" the dumb dog complained. "Dumb!? Why I ought to-" Just then a boulder fell out of the sky and landed on him. The others paled, and decided it was not wise to go against the narrator, because she controlled everything in the story. _Everything_.

Mukuro coughed, calling the attention back to him.

"_Anyway_, I am the great magic mage Mukuro, and this swamp is mine. So," a trident materialized beside him and he pointed it at the opposing group. "What is your reason for entering my domain?" Tsuna gulped and clutch his lightening knight tighter. Reborn then walked behind Tsuna and kicked him forward.

"You're leading the group, no-good-prince." Tsuna gulped and looked up at the fearsome mage, who was smirking down at him.

"W-we're on a quest to save P-princess Cloud who was kidnapped by Prince H-hibari," he muttered pathetically. Mukuro's smirk widened.

"Well then, I'm afraid I can't let you do that," he purred.

"Huh? Why not?!"

"Because, as much as I hate that stuck up prince, I would rather the princess stay locked up," the mage explained causally.

"Do you not like Cloud or something?" Yamamoto asked.

"No, it's just that she's completely insane and it would be better for everybody if she was locked up," Mukuro sighed. You see, dear readers, the princess had visited the swamp often and annoyed Mukuro so much that he would rather it be this way. Therefore, he was set on stopping our heroes.

"That was a beautiful explanation, Narrator," Mukuro complimented, but sadly, compliments will not get him anywhere or guarantee that he will win this next fight. He frowned up at the sky, but decided it would be unwise to argue. "Servants, attack!" He commanded, bringing back the mist.

The Vongola group huddled together as shapes darted around them, some bursting out of the mist and hitting them, but disappearing just as quick. Tsuna screamed out in frustration.

"I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" He ran out into the mist, waving his arms in frustration.

"Ah! Tsuna, wait!" Yamamoto tried to grab him.

"Tenth!" Despite their cries, Tsuna continued to run and wave his arms. He shrieked when he hit something solid with his fist. The mist instantly disappeared, revealing a knocked out Mukuro, via Tsuna'a fist. The mage's servants panicked when they saw their fallen leader and quickly retreated.

"Good job, Tsuna," Reborn congratulated his student. "You defeated Mukuro."

"Huh?! I did that?!"

"You sure did, Tsuna!" his rain knight applauded him, clapping the prince on the back.

"Amzaing, tenth!"

"EXTREME PUNCH!"

"Lambo is still scared."

"Looks, like we can continue to our next destination," the wizard said. "Onto the troll caves!"

"WHAT!"

**_Meanwhile, with the princess:_**

"Kyoya! Kyoya, I know you can hear me! Marry me, dammit!"

The prince casually sat on his balcony in a comfy chair, calmly reading a book and sipping his tea, ignoring the cries of the princess locked in the tower.

"MARRY ME, KYOYA!"

**_The second trial: The Varia trolls!_**

"Why do we have to go through the troll caves, Reborn?" Tsuna cried as they made there through a dark and dimly lit tunnel. Reborn led the one once again, using his staff as a light source.

"Because, no-good-prince," his tutor explained calmly, "this is the quickest way to the mountains, where we have to go to reach Namimori castle where Princess Cloud is." Tsuna sighed as he tried to shake Lambo off his boot, but the child remained firm.

"Hey, Wizard Reborn?" Yamamoto spoke up from behind them, "Aren't these the caves where that really scary troll clan, the Varia are supposed to live?"

"Yes, they are." Tsuna and Lambo gulped.

"Oh! I hear that they are extremely dangerous!"

"YOU NOT HELPING!" Tsuna yelled at his sun knight. Suddenly, the tunnel opened up into a huge cavern. As the group entered, torches suddenly lit up the space, blinding them momentarily.

"VOOOOI! I TOLD YOU THAT WE HAD INTRUDERS!"

"Ushishishi, you were right after all." The Vongola group blinked, their eyes adjusting to the light. They did not like what they saw. Unfortunately, our heroes were unlucky enough to have walked into the Varia clan's throne room. The king of the clan, Xanxus, glared own at them coldly. However, the troll with long silver hair waving his sword around decided to talk instead of their king.

"VOOOOIIII! Why are you here, human scum?!" Tsuna stepped forward shakily before his tutor could kick him out again.

"W-we're passing through to save P-princess Cloud," he stuttered, pathetically giving their reason. The blonde troll snicker, twirling his knives.

"Cloud, hm? Ushishisi, what kind of trouble has the princess gotten herself into this time?" Tsuna looked up, confused.

"Huh? You guys know Cloud?" They nodded, causing Tsuna to smile. "That's great! Then you guys are going to help us, right?!" The varia froze, confusing the Vongalo group. However, once they felt the dark aura coming from their king, they knew they were in trouble.

"You..." Xanxus seethed. "HOW DARE YOU TRY TO TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" Tsuna squeaked and retreated back to his companions as the cavern shook due to the troll king's anger. They quickly ran out into another tunnel. The tunnel collapsed behind them as they ran.

"Hey, I can see light ahead!" the rain knight shouted, lifting the hopes of the group.

"That was EXTREMELY uneventful!" Ryohei complained. Sadly, the sun knight, being the last one, only made it halfway out of the tunnel before his lower half was buried by rocks. Of course this was in no way a punishment for complaining.

"Ryohei!" They attempted in vain to pull him out of the rubble.

"It's fine, Tsuna," he assured them. "You guys go on without me!"

"Ryohei..." Tsuna muttered miserably, tears in his eyes. Lambo laughed from beside him.

"Gahahaha! Stupid Narrator can't even write a character death right! Guahaha!" In that next moment, a boulder fell out of the sky and landed on the young lightning knight. The others froze, wondering if the child was okay, but relaxed when they heard a muffled 'Lambo is invincible' from underneath the boulder.

"It's fine, Tsuna. I'm not dying, just stuck!" Ryohei waved them off. "Go on without me!" Tsuna sighed, a sad look on his face, but started walking towards the mountains.

"We'll come back for you guys after we saved the princess!" He yelled back. With the lingering promise of friendship in the air, the group continued on their journey.

"That was completely stupid!" Gokudera complained. "There was no point at all to leave them be-" Tsuna and Yamamoto quickly covered the storm knight's mouth and froze, waiting for something terrible to happen. They continued walking when nothing happened. Gokudera smirked confidently and took a step forward, only to trip over nothing and face plant. Yamamoto laughed and helped his friend up.

"I guess the Narrator does control everything!"

**_The third trial: the White Dragon Byakuran!_**

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT THING!" Tsuna exclaimed as they jumped behind a rock to avoid the stream of fire that was aimed at them.

"That's Byakuran," Reborn explained, "the dragon that Hibari hired to keep people out of his kingdom."

"A DRAGON!? NO WAY! HOW ANTISOCIAL IS THIS GUY?!"

"Calm down, Tsuna. Everything will be fine in the end," Yamamoto said reassuringly from the prince's side.

"NOT IF WE BECOME DRAGON FOOD! THERE'S NO WAY WE CAN SAVE PRINCESS CLOUD NOW!"

"Princess Cloud?" Tsuna shrieked as they looked up to see the white dragon hovering above them, listening to their conversation. A happy look slipped on the beast's face. 'I'm good friends with her!" You see, my dear readers, the princess had a habit of making odd friends in strange places, for she had a habit of wandering out of the castle and ending up in these strange places. "The narrator's right," Byakuran agreed. Reborn stepped out, approaching the dragon.

"Then how about you help us?" the wizard suggested. The dragon nodded happily.

"Sure! Just climb on my back and I'll fly you over to Namimori castle!" Tsuna stared up in bewilderment at the dragon.

"That was way easier than I thought it would be..."

**_At Namimori Castle!_**

The Vongola group jumped off the dragon's back as he landed in front of the door to Prince Hibari's castle.

"I'll wait out here, in case you need me," Byakuran informed Tsuna. The prince nodded nervously, still not comfortable with the dragon.

"I'm staying too," Reborn chirped. Tsuna gaped at his tutor in horror.

"But I was counting on you!" Reborn frowned.

"This is your quest, Tsuna. You have to do it on your own." And with those words of encouragement, the wizard kicked the prince and his two remaining knights inside the castle, slamming the door behind them. The trio stood up and brushed themselves off.

"Oh? You came after all." They jumped at the voice, looking up to see none other than Prince Hibari himself at the top of the stairs. Tsuna stepped back shakily as his knights readied their weapons. Hibari smirked and brought out his own tonfas. "Now, which one of you wants to be bitten to death first?" Gokudera bravely stepped forward startling his prince.

"I'll go first! Tenth, you go rescue the princess while I keep him occupied!" Before Tsuna could argue, his storm knight was already rushing forward to meet Hibari. Yamamoto grabbed Tsuna's shoulder and ran past the fight and on up the stairs.

"Come on, Tsuna! We have to find the princess!"

"Do you even know where she is?"

"Of course!" Yamamoto smiled proudly. "The princess is always kept in the east tower!"

"Are you sure?"

"Well, we don't really have another option," the knight said, his eyes narrowing. Tusna turned around and shrieked, discovering that Hibari had already defeated Gokudera and was stalking up the stairs toward him. Yamamoto pushed the prince on up the stairs leading to the east tower.

"Go on Tsuna! I'll hold him back for as long as I can!" Tsuna gave one last sad look back as Yamamoto drew his sword before he scrambled up the stairs. He used all his might to get there as fast as he could, not wanting to waste his knights' noble sacrifices. He scowled when he reached the locked door, but amazingly found the strength to kick it down. He almost fell into the room, but caught himself and pushed his body back up.

"Princess Cloud! We're here t-" He froze as he looked around the empty room. "SHE'S NOT IN HERE!"

"Of course not," a voice sneered behind him. Tsuna whipped around to see Prince Hibari standing confidently in the doorway. "She's locked in the west tower." Tsuna gaped, taking in this information.

"YAMAMOTO WAS WRONG!" Hibari smirked and bared his tonfas.

"Now, that I crushed your herbivore knights, I'll bite you to death!"

"HIEEEH!"

**_Outside with Byakuran and Reborn:_**

Byakuran tilted his head as the noise of battle reached his ears.

"Should we go in and help, Mr. Wizard?" He asked the short man beside him. Reborn shook his head.

"No. While they distract Hibari, we'll fly up and get the princess," the wizard explained jumping up on the dragon's back.

"Ok, then!" Byakuran sniffed the air and followed the familiar scent of the princess to the open window of the west tower. He stuck his head through the window and into the room to find the princess, mercilessly beating on the door and shouting incoherent nonsense.

"Marryable I tell you! Marryable!" She gave one last kick to the door, before Byakuran made a deep rumbling sound in his throat, alerting her of his presence. Her eyes lit up when she saw him and she ran over. She hugged his snout and planted an affectionate kiss on it.

"Byakuran! And Reborn!" She greeted as she saw the wizard behind the dragon's head. "Have you come to rescue me?"

"The one we have to rescue now is Prince Tsuna," Reborn explained. "He's fighting Hibari as we speak. Hop on." The princess gracefully scrambled onto the dragon's neck.

"Fine by me, I have some unfinished business with that guy anyway," she muttered, a dark look coming over her face. They soared to the east tower, where our valiant hero was about to be beaten in an unrecognizable pathetic pulp.

"Silly, Tsuna," Reborn muttered, jumping off Byakuran and onto the window ledge. "You have to defeat Hibari with your dying will." Then Reborn cast a magical spell over the Vongola Prince, turning into a terrifying fighting Machine.

"REBORN! BEAT PRINCE HIBARI AS IF I WERE YO DIE!" Poor Hibari, startled by the change didn't know what hit him as Tsunas fist came crashing down on his head, knocking his to the floor, rendering him unconscious. Princess Cloud cheered as she jumped off the dragon and into the room, running up the Tsuna as his dying will fizzled out. She hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.

"You saved me!" She congratulated him. He rubbed the back of his head, blushing.

"Good job, tenth!"

"Yeah! That was amazing, Tsuna!" To his surprise, Tsuna looked over at a very beat up Yamamoto and Gokudera dragging themselves into the room.

"Guys! You're okay!"

"Good job on saving the princess. Looks like everyone got a happy ending, Prince Tsuna. And you're one step closer to becoming the Tenth Generation Vongola King," the wizard Reborn concluded.

"THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BEING KI- Cloud, where are you going with Hibari?" Sure enough, everyone looked over to see Princess Cloud dragging Hibari down the stairs.

"Going to find a priest," she explained simply as she made her way down the stairs. "I'll show him who's unamarryable. Oh, hey, Narrator?" she looked up at the sky. "Any priests around here?" Luckily for Cloud, there resided a priest just down the mountain. The beautiful princess smiled up at the sky. "Thanks!" The group watched in bewilderment as the princess dragged the unconscious prince off to get hitched.

In the end, Tsuna succeeded in saving the princess, and eventually did become the Vongola King, bringing about a new peaceful era with the help of his knights. Cloud returned safely to her brother's kingdom, and much to his surprise and dismay, a violent (and unwillingly wedded) husband came along with her (although it actually worked out in Hibari's favor since he could fight the powerful Chiavarone king whenever he wanted to now), and they all lived happily ever after.

Except for Lambo. He was left under the boulder.

**_The End_**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Ok, so I'm kind taking a leaf from Legend of Korra and how the spirit world reacts to Korra and stuff. So, here's my explanation on how people's minds work in this story:**

**So, in a normal mind, people have a default place where they go, something that familiar and comfortable to them and a place of their own creation. This is kind of the center of their mind and they can access memories in this. In normal people's mind, the scene does react to emotion, but not as drastically as it does to Cloud. To do what happens in Cloud's mind, it would have to be really strong emotions. The reason that Cloud's mind reacts so much is that Cloud has an incredibly messed up mind and it's extremely fragile. Mukuro and Mammon noticed that immediately. The reason that is, is because first off, she's not even supposed to be in this world. Physically, her body is compatible with this world because it's a body made in this world, but mentally, her mind rejects this new world. Therefore, it's more difficult for illusionist to get into it (and this will some up later in another way). So, when her mind followed her to this new world where her mind literally doesn't fit in, it got messed up. Another reason why it's so fragile is that, if you haven't noticed, Cloud keeps thing in a lot and pushes thing to the very back of her head so she doesn't have to face or think about it. This is a very bad thing to do, and with her already screwed up head, it just makes it worse. Therefore, she's her most vulnerable in her own mind and it reacts to her far too easily. The way she is seen physically also changes. In the very beginning, she is her own age, but the moment she becomes scared, she turns into a child, and stays that way for a bit because she is intimidated by Mukuro and sees him as the dominant one; or the adult.**

**Ok, end explanation/rant.**

**I hope the pineapple didn't seem OOC. He was actually surprisingly easy to write. He's still a bastard, but he's being less of one to Cloud because he realizes that it would be very bad for him if he made her mad in her own mind. Like he could be trapped in there, and since it's a strange mind anyway, he doesn't want to risk that. And, she's willing to tell him stuff and she's pretty easy going, so he's okay with talking to her since she's not irrational anyway (like somebody he know coughHIBARIcough). So, to me, that explains his behavior towards her. Cloud is also a little wary at first, but she's excited and really wants to tell somebody and have somebody that can understand and help her, and right now, Mukuro's the only one available. That's why she ends up telling him so quickly and putting her trust in him too easily (something that may not be so smart to do, but she's desperate). Now, the only question is that will Mukuro honor her trust, hm? MUAHAHAHA!**

**Ehem. Anyway, hope y'all liked the whole dream thingy. LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK. GRRRR. RAWR. And that last bit was a bit of a stress reliever and something I've been playing around with for a while. Oh, and I finally watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail! I loved it.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEW, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**


	21. When you bring a baseball freak to Italy

**Chapter 21: When you bring a baseball freak to Italy**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or Yummymoto- erm, I mean Yamamoto. Yeah. **

**To avoid confusion:**

Japanese

_Italian_

**And for my fellow Americans (or whoever else doesn't call it football), when I mention football, I am talking about soccer :)**

* * *

><p><strong>"And for this moment, I shall smile, for not even god knows if I will be able to later."<strong>

**-Leigh Larson**

* * *

><p>Dino placed his hand on my shoulder, ceasing my bouncing movements.<p>

"Calm down will you? You're starting to make me regret this," he chided, sighing. I huffed and shrugged his hand off. I poked his shoulder, noticing his anxious expression.

"How about you calm down, huh?" I put my hand on my hip, looking up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Like you should really be calling me nervous." He sighed, putting his hands in his pockets and shifted his body facing away from me.

"I just really hope the kid doesn't actually show up..." I waved him off.

"Don't worry, he won't." My brother looked back in my direction, raising an eyebrow.

"And how do you know?" I shrugged.

"I just know these things."

"He's coming." Dino and I looked up as his subordinate informed him of the newcomer's arrival. Dino let out a surprised sound, while a wide grin slipped onto my face.

"Cloud said you guys were gonna bring me on a trip to Italy?" Yamamoto said, a grin competing with my own plastered on his cute face while he rubbed the back of his head. I nodded and practically skipped up to him. Dino grabbed me before I could latch onto the baseball player's arm (this produced a pout on my part).

"What happened to Gokudera?" Dino asked, as he pulled me back, preventing me from glomping my harem member.

"He told me to pass on the message that he's not coming," Yamamoto informed us, lightly chuckling at my antics.

"Is that right?" I smirked as a small, relieved smile appeared on Dino's face. I bumped him with my hip.

"Told you," I quipped, sticking my tongue out.

"That's good. You don't need to carry out this cold-blooded assassination mission." We blinked and looked down to see Reborn (by this point we had both accepted the fact that Reborn practically appeared out of nowhere). Using Reborn as a distraction, I bypassed Dino and approached Yamamoto (also effectively distracting Yamamoto and preventing him from over hearing Dino's mission to kill Gokudera if the bomber had indeed showed).

"So, you ready to go to Italy?" I chirped, smiling up at him. He nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah! Thanks again for inviting me," he said gratefully as we bid Reborn goodbye and began walking to our boarding gate.

"No problem," Dino entered the conversation slinging a friendly arm around Yamamoto. "Any friend of my little brother's is a friend of mine. And Cloud seems to be quite fond of you as well..." he trailed off giving me a warning look as I clung to the baseball star's arm. Yamamoto laughed.

"Yeah! Cloud sure is a good friend. You know, she's kind of like a little sister to me!" Yamamoto ruffled my hair. I froze and watched him as he boarded the plane, taking in his words. I blinked.

"I think I just got sistered," I muttered. Dino smiled, not hiding his amusement and joy at the revelation.

"I think," He clapped a hand on my back, pushing me onto the plane, "that I don't have to worry about you two getting together anymore." I twitched.

I really didn't know how to take being sistered.

* * *

><p>"Just treat it like your own home."<p>

"So big!" I rolled my eyes, and grabbed Yamamoto's hand, dragging him up to the front door.

"You can gawk later," I bluntly informed him as they opened the doors for us. "Get settled in now." Yamamoto numbly nodded, barely taking in my words as he marveled at the size and beauty of our home. Various maids, mafioso, and butlers greeted us at the entrance. Per usual, I returned with smiled and polite nods, occasionally asking about family and daily lives. Yamamoto stumbled through hasty greetings and awkward smiles, still trying to take our life style in. Dino clapped Yamamoto's shoulder, waking the baseball player from his awed state.

"I'll leave the entertaining to Cloud, since you guys are good _friends_ and all," he emphasized the words friends, making a very clear (and unnecessary) point. Ah, over protective Dino is amusing as always. "For now, I have some business to attend to. See you around." He waved us off. After giving a halfhearted wave back, I lead Yamamoto up the stairs.

"I'll show you to your room for now," I explained, walking backwards to face my friend. "So, I was thinking that today we could just go into the town, just so you can get a feel for Italy. Of course, unless you want to rest today and do that tomorrow. You know, jet lag and what not," I added the last thought with the flick of my hand. He shrugged, the goofy expression he's had ever since we stepped off of the plane still on his face.

"Going into town sounds good! I'm eager to see Italy after all," he assured me. I stopped in front of Yamamoto's temporary door and opened it.

"Here's your room," I said, stepping aside to let him in. Yamamoto whistled, placing his bags on the bed.

"Fancy. And spacey," he compliment, peeking out the curtains to see the view of the garden. I shrugged.

"My room is twice as big," I admitted offhandedly. He laughed and walked back over to me, ruffling my hair when my head was within his reach.

"You're a spoiled brat aren't you?"

"Very," I shallowly admitted. He laughed in response.

* * *

><p>"Wow, you're really popular," Yamamoto happily noted as I bid farewell to the elderly woman. I turned to Ivan, handing him the basket of grapes I had just received.<p>

"Yeah, this kind of happens a lot," I admitted, turning back to my foreign friend. We continued walking through the town. I smiled back and gave polite responses to their greetings. "The Chiavarone protect this town in a way, so every time we come in, they always want to show their appreciation," I explained with a small smile. "So we end up getting a lot of food and gifts and stuff." I shrugged lightly. "It's really sweet. But you should see it when Dino comes in. It's way worse," the small smile turned into an amused, yet devious one. "He has a lot of fangirls." Yamamoto laughed, slinging an arm around me as we walked, doubling the amount of stares and whispers around us. Apparently the rumors of the Chiavarone princess's foreign boyfriend were already spreading.

"Don't you have any admirers?" He asked, letting out a slightly nervous laugh, noticing some of the intense looks he was getting from some of the male populations. Ah, I see he is not as dense as I first thought.

"Oh, that," I waved it off like it was nothing. "I'm pretty sure Dino has it to where they know not to get too close. Besides," I said, scrunching my nose. "I haven't seen anyone harem worthy." Yamamoto hummed thoughtfully.

"You're picky, aren't you?"

"Yep," I popped the 'p'. Childish laughter broke through the peaceful atmosphere. I felt a small body cling onto my leg while another swung on my arm. I laughed as I looked down at the small children attached to me. As I was prying the first two off, another group came, making my efforts futile.

_"Cloud! Come play with us!" _I clung to Yamamoto for support as I was almost overwhelmed by the children. He laughed at my troubles. The kids seemed to notice him at this point._ "Is that your husband?"_ I coughed, startled by the blunt question. Yamamoto remained indifferent, not understanding the question.

_"No, Maria,"_ I leaned down, addressing the little girl, _"He's not my husband."_

_"Oh." _She nodded thoughtfully.

_"Then is he your boyfriend?"_

_"No, Luca. He's a friend," _I explained, looking down at the child wrapped around my leg. He smiled cheekily.

_"So that means I still have a chance!"_ I sighed and shook my head. Prying him off my leg, I picked him up so we were at eye-level.

_"You're too young for me, remember?"_ I scolded him.

_"But Mr. Dino said that I could marry you!"_ He rebuked, not giving up.

_"Ah, so it's his fault that you're so persistent,"_ I laughed, putting the boy down. I sighed in defeat when he immediately attached to my leg again. Yamamoto watched in amusement as I tried to calm the rabid group of children that had crowded around us, bombarding me with questions about the stranger I was with.

"See? You are popular!" He concluded. "So, this is why you're so good with the kids back home!"

"Wait, you think I'm actually doing well handling them?" I asked, confused. Maria bounced up to him.

_"What's your name, Mister?" _I patted the girl on her shoulder.

_"He doesn't speak Italian,"_ I explained, the other kids listening in. Sophia tilted her head.

_"That doesn't mean he can't play with us,"_ she stated simply. I blinked, then laughed.

_"I guess you're right,"_ I shrugged and looked up at Yamamoto. "The kids want to play," I explained, switching to Japanese. "Apparently, they have no problems with language barriers." Yamamoto immediately perked up.

"Baseball?" I frowned.

"No. You'd murder them. Just kids, remember?" He pouted. I scoffed. "How about football instead? You're in Italy, remember?" He smiled and accepted the idea. I tuned back towards the group of brats and told them of our plans. They cheered and began to drag us towards the familiar field they often use to play games in. Poor Yamamoto could only smile and nod as they jabbered in Italian to him. I laughed at the desperate look he gave me and stuck my tongue out at him. He sighed in defeat as he was pushed towards one of the makeshift goals. I was put at the opposite ends. "We're the goalies!" I yelled towards him before the game began. He sent me a thumbs up, confirming that he knew his forced position. I squared off, preparing myself for the game with a smile on my face.

It was always fun playing with the kids.

* * *

><p>"So what are we doing next?" Yamamoto asked through mouthfuls of pizza. I rolled my eyes at his manners (or lack of manners) and sipped at my own drink. The football game had been fun, and Yamamoto's team ended up winning (not one single kick went pass the sport's freak. Meanwhile, I actually let a few kids score. Yamamoto, the insane competitive athlete he is, had not such mercy), so we decided to grab a bite to eat before we headed back.<p>

"Well, I do believe that I still owe you a date," I teased, batting my eyes sarcastically. "So I have that planned for tomorrow." He nodded as he took another bite.

"So what are we doing?"

"Secret." He laughed.

"Aw, can't you at least give me a hint?" I shook my head.

"Nope. Secret." He sighed giving up. I frowned. "What? You're not curious?" He shrugged.

"I'll see tomorrow anyway," he supplied. I pouted.

"You're no fun. I was planning to torture you with it," I huffed. He laughed at my expression and leaned back, finished with his meal.

"As long as we're both having fun," he noted with a smile and he looked out the window at the Italian town.

* * *

><p>"So are you excited for the baseball game tomorrow, Yamamoto?" Dino asked during dinner that night. I froze, my fork half way to my mouth. Yamamoto tilted his head.<p>

"Is that what we're doing tomorrow?" He asked me, excitement building up in him. I unfroze, calmly setting my fork down. Dino smiled guiltily.

"Oh, was it supposed to be a surprise? Sorry," He said lamely. Holding my glare back, I picked up my knife, spinning it up in the air a few times. Dino paled.

"What are doing, Cloud?" He asked hesitantly.

"Wondering how accurate my aim with a knife is," I replied calmly. A little too calmly. Dino gulped. Yamamoto laughed, missing the irritated aura I was putting off completely.

"Hahaha, you guys are fun!"

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: Maria's question, Bel's answer:<strong>

_"Are you Cloud's husband?"_ Maria asked the self-proclaimed prince. Amused by her curiosity, I bent down to answer her question with a firm no. Bel beat me to it.

_"Yes, I am the princess's husband,"_ he told her as-a-matter-of-factly. I stared at him blankly.

_"No, actually h-"_ Bel clamped a hand over my mouth and dragged me off before I could deny that we were married. I wriggled out of his grip.

_"The cào was that?"_ I accused him. He shrugged, a Cheshire grin on his face.

_"The prince was simply answering the brat's question."_ I sighed in defeat knowing better than to start with him.

_"Yeah, thanks. Now she's going to think that every guy I'm with is my husband."_ Bel snickered at my distress and began walking off.

_"Sounds like a you problem, princess~"_

* * *

><p>"Wow! These are amazing seats," Yamamoto exclaimed as we walked in. Fingering the bill of my baseball cap I replied nonchalantly.<p>

"Of course. The Chivarone are quite influential and it helps to have connection," I admitted. Yamamoto looked eagerly at the baseball field below us.

"Connections?" He asked when he had gotten over his excitement and processed my words. I nodded but was interrupted before I could explain.

_"Cloud Chiavarone! I'm glad that you finally accepted my invitation!" _I turned around to face the new voice, smiling lightly. The guy walked in, shouldered by two very mafia looking guys. He embraced my shoulders smiling widely.

_"Marco,"_ I greeted him. _"Thank you for the tickets."_ He waved it off, motioning for the men behind him to the back. He sat down in a seat nearby, waving for me to take the one next to him.

_"Of course! I've been trying to get you to accompany me for a long time, after all! Where's Mr. Dino?"_ He glanced around the room, looking for my brother._ "The other ticket was for him, right?"_ I shook my head, and motioned for Yamamoto (who had been taking in the stadium as we talked).

_"Actually, I'm here with someone else,"_ I explained._ "This is Takeshi Yamamoto, a Japanese friend of mine." _Marco's eyes widened in surprise.

_"Ah, I didn't expect for you to bring a date. It hurts me in a way. I feel used,"_ Marco replied, a sarcastic tone to his voice. I rolled my eyes.

_"Don't be so dramatic."_ Marco was the heir of an ally mafia family. We became familiar with each other since we were similar age-wise (he was only a couple years older than me), and in a business like this, surrounded by grown-ups, at the meeting and gallas and such, we teenagers tend to gravitate towards each other. There was also the fact that Marco's father was trying to get us together, but that was a minor thing that happened with a lot of others too. Marco was quite the sports fan, so when his father has pestered him to 'get the Chiavarone girl on a date' he would always send me ticket to games. Over all, our relationship was on the 'acquaintance' level.

_"Japanese,"_ Marco mused, scratching his chin. _"I don't know that language. Mind being the translator?"_ I shrugged.

_"Sure,"_ I agreed, thinking they wouldn't have much to talk about. I was wrong. Almost as soon as Yamamoto sat down beside me and the game started, they began chatting about the game, and that soon turned into baseball in general. I didn't even understand half the stuff I was translating, but they seemed very into the topic. Somewhere, deep in the back of my head, I regretted introducing the two. After a while, I made the excuse of getting food just to escape the conversation. I came back, cotton candy in hand to find them miming to each other without my aid. At that moment, I had hope that they wouldn't need me.

"Ah, Cloud you're back!" Yamamoto waved at me, but then was distracted by the game and the two newly made friends broke out in a cheer. I sighed and sat back in between them, resuming my role. My voice felt hoarse when they game ended and we bid farewell to Marco, who insisted that Yamamoto stay in touch. I yawned as I trudged out of the stadium, a very happy Yamamoto in tow.

"Thanks for bringing me Cloud! Marco was a fun guy," Yamamoto chirped. I gave him a blank, yet amused look.

"I'm pretty sure you're better friends with Marco than I am now," I admitted.

"Oh," Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, looking a bit guilty. "Sorry about that." I waved him off quickly.

"It's fine," I assured him. "We just acquaintances anyway. And I'm perfectly alright leaving you two to fangirl about baseball without me."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Cloud."<p>

"Hm?" I looked back at Yamamoto, who had stopped in the hallway behind me. My eyes followed his gaze to a picture of my mother. I hesitated joining him, having forgotten the existence of the picture.

"Who's this? She looks a lot like you!" Yamamoto said happily, smiling. "'Cept for her hair… and you have a different face shape. But the resemblance is still there, right?" His smiled dropped as he looked at me, arms crossed and an empty look on my face, as I gazed up at the portrait of Mama.

"That's… that's my mother," I replied. Yamamoto slowly nodded, having quickly grasped the delicacy of my mood.

"She's beautiful."

"I know." I tightened my arms around my shoulders, feeling guilty for not having given thought to my mother in such a long time. It felt selfish.

"My mother died too." I looked at Yamamoto, surprised. I was even more surprised to see sad look on his face, where his normally bright smile was. "Car crash," he explained, as if I had asked. "I was young when it happened. They say that I was too young to really remember her, but…."

"They don't realize how much we really remember," I finished for him, grabbing hold of his arm gently and leaning into him. "It's sad how much we remember," I whispered softly, looking up at the portrait of Mama, smiling. Yamamoto sighed beside me, slightly leaning into me as well.

"Yeah, it is."

* * *

><p><em>"Cloud, are you sure everything is okay?"<em>

_"Yeah, it's totally, fine Dino," _I assured him, keeping the haste out of my voice.

_"You sure? Venice can be a dangerous and confusing place."_

_"He wanted to go here."_ So technically, this was all Yamamoto's fault, I convinced myself. _"And everything is fine, so bye."_ I snapped the phone shut and ended the call before my brother could interrogate me more. I pocketed my phone and kept running, continuing with my mission: Find Yamamoto.

"I should of never have taken that _bun tyen-shung duh ee-dway-ro _here in the first place," I muttered angrily under my breath as I dodged through the crowds of people, scanning both the sidewalks and the water ways. "This is what I get for asking where he wanted to go." As you can tell, my mood was quite sour. I had turned around to find no Yamamoto following me about an hour ago, and haven't see hide or tail of him since.

"Hey, Cloud!" I skidded to a stop, narrowly avoiding colliding with the person in front of me. I looked up, startled to see a smiling, waving Yamamoto leaning out of one of the many balconies above.

"How did you get up there?" I yelled up at him in disbelief. He blinked, as if just now thinking about it.

"I don't know," he yelled back. I resisted the urge to face palm. "I'll come down to you!"

"Wait, Yamamoto!" I yelled as he disappeared. "Stay where you are!" I sighed in defeat and began trying to find my way up to the balcony he had been in, hoping that he had heard my words. Much to my dismay, he was gone by the time I reached it. I resisted to bang my head against the wall. I scanned the area, freezing when I saw a specific person on a gondola in the canal.

"Hey Cloud!" I blinked at Yamamoto. "This is pretty cool, don't you think!" He gestured to the boat.

"How the _cào _did you get there?" He rubbed the back of his head and shrugged.

"I don't know." This time, I did face palm.

"Stay there!"

"I don't think I really can," he replied as the gondola kept moving. Of course, he was right. By the time I got back, he was nowhere to be seen. That's when my phone rang again. I huffed in annoyance when I saw who was calling.

"Hey, bro. Everything's fine. No one's lost, we're all good, love you, bye." I flipped the phone shut, stared at it for a moment, then hastily called Yamamoto's phone. I was surprised when his ring tone went off nearby. I turned to see a rough looking man looking at a very familiar looking phone. I frowned. He seemed to notice my gaze. The man looked between me and the phone. Then he tried to run. I say tried, because I ended up judo flipping him before he got far. I casually sat on his back, holding him in place. I dangled Yamamoto's phone in front of his face, while putting my friend's stolen wallet safely in my own pocket.

_"Where did you get this?"_ I asked, slipping into my interrogation mode. My eyes narrowed when he didn't respond. I dug my heel into a pressure point on his back. He squirmed in protest. _"Where did you get this?"_

_"F-from some asian kid!" _He replied, finding it wise to answer.

_"Which way did he go?"_

_"He went west! West!"_ Feeling somewhat hopeful, I got up and dusted myself off. The pick pocket immediately scrambled away from me.

_"Thanks for squealing!"_ I yelled after him._ "Now off to find Yamamoto..."_ I trailed off, a new, slightly worrying thought entering my head. _"...who doesn't know any_ _Italian whatsoever."_ I face palmed. Hard.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, while Cloud was face palming across the city, Yamamoto was walking by the canal with a very confused, lost look on his face. He had gotten off the boat a little while ago and had no earthly idea on where to go from this point. He looked down when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He met the care-worn, folded face of an elderly woman.<p>

_"Avete bisogno di aiuto, signore?"_ Yamamoto tilted his head and gave the woman a confused smile, not knowing what to say. The old woman repeated her question, then seemed to understand that he had no idea what she was saying. She gave him a small smile and hooked her arm with his. She began pulling him towards a small cafe looking store. _"Seguire, seguire!"_ She gently chided. Yamamoto politely went with her, since she seemed like she wanted to help. She sat him down at a small table, and motioned for him to stay there. He obliged as she went into a back room, returning with a hot drink and a pastry. He gladly took it, nodding thanks to her. An awkward silence passed as the woman continued to smile at him, then a familiar figure ran by.

"Cloud!" He yelled, almost toppling out of his chair. The girl hastily back tracked, and peeked in the shop. She immediately walked over to him, looking like she was trying to calm herself and stop herself from punching the stupid out of him.

"I'm not even going to ask how you got here," she started irritably. "I'm never taking you to a big unfamiliar place again." She then noticed the elderly woman sitting in front of her friend. She bowed slightly and smiled at her._ "Mi dispiace per il disturbo. Grazie per aver aiutato il mio amico, perdere. Si è perso in precedenza e ho cercato per lui."_

_"Non era un problema. Sembrava perso così ho deciso di aiutare. Sono contento che lui trovato, ed essere sicuri di stare attenti la prossima volta." _The woman replied, returning the smile.

_"Lo faremo. Grazie per l'aiuto." _Cloud grabbed Yamamoto's arm, and began making their exit. Yamamoto blinked in surprise, having become lost in the rapid conversation between the two females. _"Arrivederci!"_

_"Arrivederci!" _Yamamoto repeated happily, proud to know at least one word. His friend rolled her eyes. He smiled apologetically at her. She huffed.

"You know, maybe it's a good thing you're leaving tomorrow," she admitted. "Less chances for you to get lost in Italy."

* * *

><p>"We'll visit Japan soon," I promised Yamamoto before he entered his boarding gate. Dino nodded in agreement behind me.<p>

"Be sure to take care of Tsuna," Din inputted, propping his arm on my shoulder. "He needs his family after all." Yamamoto nodded happily.

"I will. See you, guys! And thanks for the vacation!" The baseball player waved us off and disappeared into the gate. I sighed.

"I'm happy to say that I can claim him to be in my harem," I noted dreamily. Dino's expression dead panned.

"Didn't he sister you?" I scoffed and crossed my arms.

"That's cute. You think that will stop me." Dino slumped.

"I can always try..." He muttered miserably. I patted his shoulder.

"And keep it up. It's more fun that way," I chirped happily and skipped off. My brother looked after me in disbelief.

"You think I could lock her up in tower and just keep her there?" He mused to Romario.

"She'd find a way out," he replied bluntly.

"... it wouldn't hurt to try."

* * *

><p>"It will be starting soon," Mukuro informed me, leaning back smugly in his throne. "It's a shame you won't be there to help me." I eyed him indifferently.<p>

"What makes you think I would help you defeat the Vongola tenth?" I inquired, the air turning rigid.

"What makes you think you have a choice?" he smoothly rebuked. "I already have access to your mind." I shrugged.

"That doesn't matter if you don't understand it. You can't control something you don't understand," I explained simply. A ghost of a frown appeared on his face. A beat of silence passed. A shattering sound echoed around us as he opened his mouth to speak.

"No matter. I already have what I need from you at the moment. And I have ranking Futa," he purred, stretching before he rose out of his throne. "Therefore, you are not my most important tool at the moment." I rolled my eyes at his wording.

"Be sure to come back and chat after you lose," I teased. He scoffed.

"You said it yourself, little Chiavarone; the future you know of is merely an outline that can be changed. And I," his eyes narrowed as they met mine. "Intend to change it."

"Good luck with that," I said, unaffected by the lingering threat. He ignored my comment.

"I'll return in the aftermath," he informed me, "after I had possessed the Vongola Tenth. You will be a valuable tool in helping me secure the rest of the mafia." I hummed thoughtfully. He met my eyes before he walked out the door.

"Prepare for change, little Chiavarone." And he was gone.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I don't know why, but I really want to write a bunch of Mukuro and Cloud scenes. I just really like writing them. It's the same with Bel... Cloud really needs some better (saner) friends. Sadly, that must wait until later. Sigh.**

**If you haven't noticed, I am going to be writing seasonal and holiday omakes. I will also add in shorter things, similar to the princess omake in the last chapter, and also game show ones and interviews (like Haru Haru Interview Dangerous or whatever that thing is). This is all for the sake of pleasing the plot bunnies and stress relief. And fun. Let's not forget fun. The Halloween one will be interesting~**

**Anywho, onto thoughts THAT ARE ACTUALLY RELEVANT TO THE CHAPTER: I was listening to "Love is an Open Door' during the majority of writing this, the reason being that I actually don't put a 'lovey-dovey' tag on it. I think of that more as puppy love, if I had to put a kind of love to it. But the song is fun, and it's about having fun and being similar and having fun with another person, which pretty much accurately describes Yamamoto and Cloud's relationship. Okay, that's it, I'm coining "Love is an Open Door" as their song. Now I just have to find songs for Bel and Mukuro (Together, they are like Cloud's Angels. I don't even know if that makes sense).**

**This is a fluffy chapter. Fluff, fluff, fluff, but fun to write. Sort of a filler, since nothing really happened, but oh well. Sorry if it's not very good and sorry about the bit of wait, school's a bitch, blah, blah, blah, life and karma, but I have another snow day so, yeah! Anyway, since this note (novel) is long enough, I'll stop for now.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**

**Edit: Why am I only adding in sad angsty things? Eh. I just added one thing is this chapter. Hell to the fucking Yeah.**


	22. Hitting the Target (or not)

**Chapter 22: Hitting the Target (or not)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR **

* * *

><p><strong>"After all, you only see what I choose to show you."<strong>

**-****Unknown**

* * *

><p>"A jail break?" Dino nodded. I kept my face neutral. He handed me a file and I gingerly flipped through it, coming across a picture of three unfamiliar people. Unfamiliar, but I knew exactly who they were.<p>

"They escaped from a high security prison a number of days ago, on the eve of the execution of the man in the middle; Mukuro Rokudo." I handed the file to Romario beside me. "This caused the death of several wardens and prisoners, and also caused some of those prisoners to escape." I nodded when he looked over to me, my face still neutral. It would be kind of, sort of bad if he found out I have a connection mind link thing going on with the ring leader of this prison break. Yeah, that would not be good.

"So," I leaned on the desk, "Why are you telling me this?"

"So you're informed," Dino answered simply. "And you'd find out sooner or later anyway." I shrugged.

"Yeah, you're probably right," I admitted.

"What really worries me about this is information I just received on where they are right now," Dino sighed, running his hand through his hair. I raised an eyebrow with mock curiosity.

"Where are they?" I asked, fully aware of the answer.

"Japan."

* * *

><p>"Sheesh. I already said this had nothing to do with me!" Tsuna complained, looking at the multiple martial arts and self-defense flyers in his hands. "When did Mom get all these anyway? You were hired from a flyer too, weren't you?" He glanced at his demon tutor, who was casually walking along the top of the wall beside him.<p>

"You should ask Cloud to teach you a few moves. She's a capoeirista."

"What the heck is that? It sounds dangerous!" Tsuna shrieked, not liking where the baby was going with this.

"It's a martial art," Reborn explained simply. "Cloud spent two years in China learning it, along with a few other styles. She could help you with your problem."

"IT'S NOT EVEN MY PROBLEM!" Tsuna shook his head vigorously. "And I didn't even know Cloud could fight!"

* * *

><p>I sneezed, startling myself. Scratching my nose idly, wondering where the sneeze had come from. I shrugged and went back to my scope, singling out my target. I had become a bit sloppy, with the lack of practice recently. I sighed as I easily hit the inanimate target I was forced to use (Dino's 'no shooting family members' rule was a bit annoying when it came to needing to practice on moving targets). It would be nice if I had someone to help me with this, but Dino was busy gathering information. Also...<p>

I picked up my sniping rifle with a thoughtful look. Flames had been on my mind lately. It would be helpful if I could use my flame attribute with my gun, making it more effective. I've already went through the different types and thought of different ways I could use them, considering I had no idea what my own was at the time.

"But first," I muttered, slinging my trusty gun over my shoulder, starting to head back. "I need to work on my marksmanship." A small smile slipped onto my face. "And I know exactly who to bug about it."

* * *

><p>"It's taking a while to find the one we want, hm? I wonder if I could make her help us...?" A loud clang sounded as the bowling ball collided with the pins.<p>

"Her?" Ken turned back to Mukuro. "Oh! That informative chick, right?" Mukuro nodded his head, still in deep thought.

"She wouldn't be willing of course," He said with an amused expression. "She's quite difficult as a whole." Ken scoffed.

"Then why do you need her? She seems pretty useless to me." Mukuro leaned back, resting his arms on the back of the couch.

"Oh, believe me, she's an extremely useful tool," he chided. "And I tend to use her as a tool until she's completely useless to me."

* * *

><p>The phone rang, waking me up from my day dreams. I sighed warily and slid my feet off of Dino's desk, reaching over to grab the phone.<p>

"Hello?"

_"Cloud?"_

"Reborn?" I asked, surprised that I had come into contact with him sooner than expected. I was planning on contacting him, but I guess it's easier this way. "What up, demon tutor?"

_"Why are you answering Dino's phone?"_

"Because I was in his office. Why did you call?" I asked, changing the subject.

_"I need information on the recent jailbreak,"_ he explained, straight to the point per usual. _"Can you give me that?"_

"Yeah, I know about that." I proceeded to tell him about the jail break, and the prisoners that escaped from it. "I'll get someone to fax you pictures later."

_"Thanks Cloud."_

"Wait, before you go, I need you to give me some contact information."

_"Who do you need to contact?"_

* * *

><p>"Should you really be doing this, princess? You know Boss wouldn't approve."<p>

"It's fine, Ivan," I brushed off his worries as we walked through Mafia Land. "And Dino knows I'm here."

"But that's only because he thinks you're just going to have fun at Mafia Land," Bono argued from my other side. "Isn't that lying?" I huffed and crossed my arms.

"No, it's simply excluding the whole truth."

"Isn't that the same?"

"There's a difference," I shot back. "And besides, I should be the one complaining here. While you guys are off having a good time in the front of Mafia Land, I'll be in the back dealing with yet another Spartan baby that is possible even more Spartan than the other two."

"But didn't you choose this for yourself, princess?" I gave them a blank stare, sighed, and dug out two wads of cash out of my back pack.

"Here," I handed one to Ivan and Bono respectively. "Go have fun and be sure not to let Dino know what I'm really doing."

"Isn't this bribery?"

"Yep, now shoo." I managed to get them to leave me with the promise that I'll keep in touch. With that done, I made my way to the information booth. "Cloud Chiavarone," I introduced myself. "I'm here to see Colonello," I explained to the lady at the desk.

"Of course, Miss Chiavarone. We've been expecting you. Please go through that door to the subway." I thanked her and followed her instructions.

"It's like it's teasing me..." I whined, pressing my cheek against the subway window as it passed the beach. "But Bono's right, I did choose this for myself... I'm really stupid sometimes." I took a deep breath as the subway slowed to a stop. I stood up and moved in front of the closed doors. They opened. I stepped out. I looked around.

"Hey, you have guts to seek me out!" I looked down to see yet another adorable baby. Luckily, since I was used to this, I could keep my inner fangirl quiet inside my head.

"You're Colonello?" I asked the military kid.

"And you're the brat Fon trained," he shot back. I tensed as he pointed to snout of his rifle at me, but relaxed when I realized that he was poking me with it, and not shooting me... yet. "Hey, not bad," he noted when he finished evaluating me. "Looks like Fon has you conditioned." I felt a little pride swell within me. "But that doesn't mean that you'll survive my training!" And then that pride deflated.

"Whoa, whoa, I'm just here to work on my sniping skills with you," I reminded him.

"We'll work on that, maggot," he ensured me. "Among other things." I was starting to get a bad feeling about this.

"Other things?"

"Hey! I'll make a fine soldier out of you!"

It was then that I truly started to regret coming here.

* * *

><p>Someone strong will challenge you. Those were her words; her warning. Hibari Kyoya was someone he would label as strong. Strong, but easily beatable. Sawada Tsuna was not strong, not in Mukuro's eyes. And yet...<p>

He had been defeated by this person. Someone one strong will challenge you. It wasn't a lie, but at the same time she had manipulated him. Because of this loss, he had lost his body. She had said that he will lose something important, and now it was obviously clear what she was talking.

But she also said that she would help him get it back and he fully intended to hold her to that promise, even if she refused.

* * *

><p>I was really starting to miss Fon. Fon had some pretty hard training sessions, but it was nothing compared to the hell Colonello put his students through.<p>

"Why," I coughed out water as I pulled myself next to the Roman Demon Tutor, "do I have to escape from a whirlpool to get better at sniping?"

"Hey! Who said this had anything to do with sniping!"

"But in the two weeks I've been here, we haven't really touched that," I pointed out. "We've only been doing physical training and trials."

"That's because you have no muscle, maggot!" I rolled over as he aimed a kick at my stomach. I thought over his reasoning, and had to admit he was right; I had no muscle and therefore I was lacking strength.

"Fine," I huffed, pushing myself up. "But we have to work on sniping sometime." Colonello snorted.

"Hey, I'm the teacher here, so I decide what we work on!"

"If you're the teacher, then I feel sorry for the brat." We turned around to face the new voice. I paled and resisted the urge to run away in terror when I saw that it was yet another small child (I've dealt with enough of those for two lifetimes).

"Lal! What are you doing here?" Colonello's mood lightened. I stiffened, not really knowing what else to do.

"CEDEF had some business here and since I heard you had a new student, I'd thought I'd drop by to save them from your horrible teachings," she explained as she walked over to us. For a moment, I had a small sliver of hope that she was giving me mercy. "So I decided that I would train her too while I'm here." With those words, that hope was crushed. I tried not to inch back as the two Spartan babies' intense gazes fell on me. I blinked, then I smartly jumped up and started running.

"I just wanted to get better at sniping!"

* * *

><p>Due to Colonello's training, I valued my sleep very, very much. So, when I woke up in my mind garden for what seemed the first time in forever, I was not very pleased. It would also be accurate to say that Mukuro was not pleased either. At least, that's what I gathered when I had to dodge a trident aimed for my face.<p>

"I do not like being manipulated, Little Chiavarone," Mukuro pulled his trident that was embedded into my mind tree out, and twirled it. "Not one bit."

"Noted," I piped, backing away as casually as I could. "And in what way did I manipulate you?"

"You gave me the wrong weakness," He stated simply, walking towards me.

"But I did give you _a _weakness," I retaliated. "At least I helped."

"Yes, and now," He swung his trident once he was within range, pointing it at my neck. I stood still, staring him right in the eyes. "You going to help me get my body back." There was moment where we simply stared at each other. I blinked.

"Sure." His eyebrows collided.

"What?"

"I said sure," I restated. "I'll help you get your body back." He blinked, and put his trident down.

"You're... you just agreed to it?" He asked carefully. I nodded.

"Yep, but it will take a while." He frowned. "I mean, we have a few arcs to get through." His frown deepened.

"Arcs?" I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, arcs. I'm a little worried right now; you seem to be only able to ask simply questions at this point." He snorted.

"Please, I was just a little surprised that you agreed so easily," He easily brushed it off and moved back to the center of the garden. "But, you seem to the strange assumption that I'm going to help you." He struck the ground with his trident, bringing up his usual throne. "It's quite amusing, actually."

"Well, yeah." I sat down on the grass in front of him. "And that's because you know that I know the plot. Therefore, you're the only one that can help me." I gave him a dazzling smile. He returned an amused smirk.

"You're reasoning is lacking logic, Little Chiavarone." I scoffed.

"Who needs logic when you have spoilers?"

"Hm, spoilers?"

"Lots," I elaborated. "And you'll get to be in on the fun." Mukuro thoughtful stroked his chin, a sly smirk on his face.

"Kufufuf, I might just join in on your little game, Little Chiavarone."

* * *

><p>I whistled at the power of Colonello's shot. A thoughtful look slipped onto my face.<p>

"Are those flames?" I asked on a whim. Colonello blinked in surprise.

"You know about the flames?" I blinked.

"...yes?" He seemed to accept that answer.

"Yeah, this is specially made for absorbing the flames," he explained, holding up his gun. I eyed it with interest.

"And where'd you get that?" He eyed me right back.

"From an untrustworthy guy," he snapped back.

"Ah," I nodded. "To be honest, I'm quite curious about the flames. I've been thinking about their properties and how to use them."

"You seem to be very knowledgeable on this, brat." I shrugged.

"What can I say? I'm one hell of an informant. But, I do want to get in contact with someone would could give me weapons that work with my flame attribute." I went back to a serious mood. Colonello frowned.

"... I can give you his contact information, but," A scowl formed on his face. "This guy's really untrustworthy. You might not want to get in touch with him."

"If it means I can get stronger, then it doesn't matter," I stated. He gave me a sideways glance.

"Why do you want to get strong, brat?"

"To protect my family," I answered immediately. "And so I can pull my own weight." Colonello scoffed.

"Of course you can do that, maggot! You've had two Acrobaleno train you. Three, if you count the short time Lal was here." I raised an eyebrow at his statement.

"Oh? Is that a compliment I hear?"

"Don't get cocky, brat."

* * *

><p>"Well isn't this a touching goodbye?"<p>

"Don't forget your weight training. If I see you again and you've lost that little bit of measly muscle you've formed during my training, then you're dead."

"Noted," I replied, shifting my legs, feeling the weights attached to them. "And thanks for the contact info." He clicked his tongue.

"Good luck with that guy. And don't disappoint me, brat." I smiled and bowed slightly.

"Thank you for training me, Colonello."

"Yeah, yeah, just go already!"

* * *

><p>I managed to convince Ivan and Bono to keep convincing Dino I was at Mafia Island (puppy eyes are one of my greatest weapons in my arsenal). Meanwhile, I hopped on my plane to my next destination with absolutely no plan on how to approach this guy. Therefore, instead of using the time to plan, I took a nap, which led me to another daily visit with Mukuro.<p>

"I met a girl."

"Bout time. For a while I though you we-" He covered my mouth before I went there, his eye twitching.

"This girl will be my link to the outside world," he continued. "I was contemplating using you, but her circumstances were more preferable. Not to mention her mind was much more stable than yours."

"Thanks," I said when he had taken his hand off my mouth. "So you've met Chrome? You sent her to Japan, right?" He rolled his eyes.

"Your knowledge is accurate as usual, Little Chiavarone."

"And now it's time I let you in on some of this knowledge," I sat down, making myself comfy. He raised an eyebrow, but sat down in his throne, waiting. "First up, after your arc, is the Varia Arc. The Varia, as you may know, is the Vongola's independent assassination squad. Their leader, Xanxus, is the ninth's adoptive son. He set up a coup d'état to take down the ninth, but he failed and was frozen by a Vongola technique. He's been frozen for eight years until he was unfrozen. We've basically caught up to the present now." I looked to see if Mukuro was following all of this. He met my gaze.

"Go on," he waved his hand. I rolled my eyes and continued.

"So, now that he's thawed, he wants to be the boss. He kidnapped the ninth and forged a letter saying that the ninth no longer approves of Tsuna as the heir, thus causing the conflict for the tenth boss position. Now, the Vongola have the Vongola Rings that the guardians use. Because all this stuff that Xansus started, they have to have the ring battles, which is the whole point of the arc." Mukuro sighed and rolled his eyes.

"You could have explained that in a much simpler way." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Shut it. This is my first time explaining it, and I haven't even gone through all the details." Mukuro gave me blank stare.

"Please, don't go through the details."

"But, we need t-"

"Quiet."

"Bu-" This time he actually got up and covered my mouth. I stopped struggling when I noticed the serious expression on his face. He moved his hand from my mouth as we looked around. I gave him a questioning look. He met my gaze and mouthed: _'We're being watched'_. My eyes widened as a billion questions starting filling my head. Naturally, my mind reacted. Violent gusts of wind tore through the once tranquil scene.

"Kufufuf, found you." Mukuro tore off after a shape that had bolted out of the garden. Not knowing what else to do, I followed. We raced through the forest chasing the shadow. Soon, the trees turned into people, and in the next moment we were in a crowded ballroom. I felt a pang when I recognized the scene.

_"Happy Birthday, Dino, my son!" _I watched as my father held the shoulders of a younger version of Dino with pride as the rest of the family laughed in celebration around them. I managed to spy a younger version of myself and our mother nearby, away from the party, seemingly in a world of their very own. We were both smiling, happy.

"It's moving through your memories." I was startled my Mukuro's voice, forgetting he was there.

"Yeah," I shook my head, looking away from Mama. "Memories."

"Don't get lost in them." He grabbed my arm and dragged me on, away from her. The scene changed again, into a bamboo forest from China. We moved on before we could see the full memory. Soon enough they started to blur past us; Dino helping me build a snowman, Yamamoto and I entering the sushi shop, Bel dragging me away from a furious Levi. At last, the memories stopped and we entered a dimly lit hallway. The walls were made up of vaults of all different shapes and sizes. I moved closer to Mukuro, unaware that I had grown smaller because of my fear. He slowed his pace as we walked through, eyeing the vaults with mild curiosity. We began to pass more hallways covered in similar vaults until it was to the point we were walking through a maze. Mukuro stopped suddenly, and twirled his trident, darting around a corner to attack. I ran over when I heard a grunt to find that the illusionist had pinned someone to the wall.

"Cloud, I need you to imagine this person chained," Mukuro instructed me. "This is your mind. Just imagine them wrapped in chains." I nodded and took a deep breath, following his directions. I closed my eyes in concentration and only opened them when I heard the clinking of chains. I opened my eyes to find our prisoner chained. My smile caused the scene to morph back into the garden, where the chains turned into vines, anchoring the prisoner to the tree. "Good job, Little Chiavarone. Now," Mukuro held his trident to the prisoner's throat. "Do you know this person?" Now back to my normal size, I stepped forward, examining the girl. I shook my head.

"I don't know her." Deranged laughter filled the garden, causing me to step back.

"I don't know her, she said!" The girl laughed from her prison. Her voice was harsh and broken, matching her appearance. "How sad! How pathetic! 'I don't know her'! HA!" Mukuro's eyes narrowed as he put more pressure on his trident.

"Explain," he hissed. I held up my hand to stop him from doing anything drastic. He seemed unhappy about it, but he backed off. I met her eyes, and stepped forward. I drew closer to her face, scrutinizing her features.

"Don't I know you?" I said.

"You should," she replied. "But the real question is, do you know you?"

* * *

><p><strong><span>OMAKE: This Ship has Sails<span>**

"Pathetic," Lal sneered at me as I was bandaging my wounds for the day. Despite her words, I was proud to say that I was getting less and less wounds every day.

"But you are getting better, brat," Colonello allowed, poking my arm with his gun. "Looks like you're actually forming a bit of muscle." Lal frowned at his praising.

"Don't encourage her," she remarked. "She still has a long way to go."

"Hey, but she's improving." I looked back and forth between them as they bickered. I sighed and rested my hand on my chin with a dreamy look on my face.

"It's like you guys are already married," I noted idly.

"W-what!? Married to this useless guy!?" Lal sputtered in defiance, but there was no hiding the blush on her face. Colonello, also a little red faced, chose that it was wiser not to comment. I shrugged.

"I totally ship it."

Despite the doubled amount of torture I got the next day, I had no regrets for pointing out the obvious.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**So, this is pretty much the end of the Mukuro arc. Sorry, if some of you thought that Cloud was going to be in Japan with the gang, but it just wouldn't make sense for her to be there. And she needed to get a bunch of other shit done. I've seen other OC stories where they put the OC in everything and it just doesn't make sense for them to be there. In other news, I'm thinking about calling this the Rifle Arc? So far we've had the Growing Up Arc, Meet and Greet Arc, and now... the Rifle Arc? Hm. Maybe, possibly? Yeah. Well the Rifle Arc will probably end next canon chapter (since next chapter will be the valentines day chapter) and onto the MOTHER FREAKING FUCKING VARIA VOOOIIII ARC! Which I have been waiting to write because that's where a lot of shit goes down.**

**Not really many changes in this arc because Cloud sees this arc as something that has to happen in order for them to grow and become stronger. You see, this is why it's good that Cloud is in this world and not me. I'd be trying to stop everything from harming my 'babies' and that would be my sole objective.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**-Klu**


	23. Valentine's Day Omake

**Chapter 23: Valentine's Day Omake**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or Nationwide**

**NOTE: This is pretty much non-canon, if I were to label it. So, this is set when Cloud is 15-16ish and everybody if pretty much chill with each other (well, as chill as they get)**

**WARNING: This is completely chaos. You have been warned~**

* * *

><p>Truthfully, I didn't even know it was Valentines Day. It was just a normal day at the Chiavarone estate... until I was forced to dodge a cleaver that was aimed directly at my head. My instincts from training immediately kicked in and I pivoted around as I ducked, hooking my arm around my attacker and flipping them over. When I had them locked down and unable to move, I got a good look at them. I was surprised to find that it was a girl that looked to be only a little bit younger than me.<p>

"What the _go tsao de_ hell is wrong with you?" I asked her, trying to figure out how I could have pissed off a person to the extent that they would want to chuck a cleaver at me (especially if I hadn't even met them before in my life).

"You steal all the hotties! You whore!" She screeched at me in an insane manner. "You little small boobed bitch!" My eye twitched. Annoyed and already fed up with the stranger I knocked her out easily and dumped her in a nearby bush, not really caring what happened to her.

"That was weird," I muttered, scratching the back of my head as I walked away. I bridged back as a crow bar and a baseball bat swung at me out of nowhere. I flipped back up and immediately went into attack mode, managing to knock out my two new attackers. "What the hell is going on today," I complained in disbelief, as I looked to see that these attackers were also teenage girls. I blinked in surprise when I noticed one of them was wearing KHR shirt. It took me a while to comprehend this. It took me even longer to comprehend a girl falling out of the sky right next to me. I immediately jumped back, ready to attack. For a while, she didn't move, and I thought she had died from the landing. It would a lie to say I didn't jump when she shot up.

"Whoo! That was fun! No death and all... that's a good note." She pushed herself up and dusted herself off. I remained tensed and extremely confused. She noticed me and gave me a small wave. "Hey." I blinked.

"You're not going to attack me, are you?" I questioned her carefully. She shook her head.

"Nah, I'm on your side," She paused. "Just think of me as Nationwide." She gave me an awkward smile. I raised an eyebrow.

"Who... who are you?" She puffed her cheeks out as she thought.

"Um... I'm God?" My expression deadpanned.

"You are not God."

"...I'm a god?"

"...Wouldn't you be a goddess?"

"Well, yeah I gue-" she shook her head vigorously. "No time for that now! We need to stop the fangirls!" She grabbed my shoulders. By this point, I had labeled her as harmless, so I didn't judo flip her for touching me.

"Fangirls?" I asked, looking behind her at the unconscious girls. "How did they even get in here?"

"Well..." the stranger girl looked away with a slightly guilty look on her face. "I might not have been watching the fourth wall close enough and they managed to break through..."

"Are you telling me that the fangirls broke the fourth wall?" I paled, now starting to understand the danger of the situation. "How did they manage to do that?"

"Well, they get quite ravenous on Valentine's Day," she informed me.

"And what do you want me to do about it?" I shook her hands off my shoulders, and then put my hands on my hips.

"I need you to eliminate the fangirls," she bluntly told me, looking me straight in the eyes.

"You want me to kill them?" I crossed my arms. She waved me off.

"They're fangirls; they're not really people, so it's alright to kill them," she argued. I shrugged, finding the logic in her words.

"But why should I do this? What do I gain out of this?" I really didn't want to waste time with this if I didn't get anything out of it.

"First of all," the girl started, holding up a number one with her finger. "All the fangirls have a strong hatred for you, since they have the idea that you are a man-stealing-whore." I shrugged; I could handle a few fangirls after my blood. "And, they're after all the guys." Now, this got my attention.

"You mean they're after my harem members?"

"Well, yeah, and also Gokudera and Tsuna and D-"

"I'm on it! I'll protect my harem!" I began to run off, but grabbed the trunk of a tree to swing back around when a thought popped into my head. "Wait, what are you going to be doing while I'm out hunting the fangirls?"

"I'm going to working on fixing the wall so no more fangirls will get through," she explained. I raised an eyebrow.

"Are you sure you can do that? Fix the wall and fight them off?" She scoffed and waved me off.

"Don't worry; I've got plenty of tasers."

"And fixing the wall...?"

"Lots and lots of duct tape." I blinked.

"Will that work?" A very serious expression crossed her face.

"Duct tape will always work." I sweat dropped and backed away slowly.

"Ok, then... I'm off." She switched back to a happy mood in a millisecond.

"Good luck, doll!"

"...right."

* * *

><p>I managed to arrive at the Varia HQ in a little under an hour, only to find them already under attack by the horde of fangirls. I scowled and bolted out of the car, guns in hand. I unleashed my bullets on the group at the front doors, taking them down easily. As I fought my way through the building I managed to catch a glimpse of Bel's blonde head.<p>

"Bel!" I drew his attention to me.

"Ushishis, princess," He greeted, slicing the throat of a fangirl. "Happy Valentine's Day!"

"Yeah, Happy Valentine's Day," I said without much enthusiasm behind it as I shot another fangirl in the head. Bel seemed to notice this.

"I thought you were against killing, princess," He chided as we stood back to back, defending each other.

"These are fangirls, Hubby," I explained to him.

"Ah," he said in understanding. "And how do you know this exactly?"

"I just know that I have to protect my harem members against them and take the fangirls out," I explained to Bel as I made my way up the stairs, on the hunt for Squalo. "Somebody else is already working on sealing their entrance so no more will get in," I added, thinking of the strange girl I had met earlier. "Therefore, once we find Squalo, we're heading to Basil and then onto Japan.I'm not going to bother with Byakuran, since I don't know where he is right now, and he can take care of himself."

"VOOOOIIIIII!"

"And I think we just found Squalo," I noted, running towards the noise. Bel huffed from behind me, but followed.

"I don't see why we have to get the Loud Commander," he complained. "The prince doesn't want company." Ignoring his comment, I burst into the room to find Squalo, Mammon and Levi fighting off more fangirls. I fought my way over to them, and grabbed Squalo's arm. I squeaked as he swung his sword at me.

"Squalo! It's me!" He stopped his attack at my words.

"Brat! What the hell are you doing here?"

"No time to explain! We have to get to the jet before we're overwhelmed." Squalo scowled at the thought of leaving the fight, but when he looked around he saw the reason in my words.

"Voi! Fall back, scums!" He yelled back to Mammon and Levi. Mammon quickly floated over the group he was fighting to us as we started to retreat out the door.

"Wait! What about the boss?" Levi screamed.

"He can take care of his own damn self!" Squalo yelled back. "Just get your ass over here, trash!" Squalo rolled his eyes when he saw that Levi was having trouble getting to us. He grabbed my arm and begin to follow Bel and Mammon as they fought their way outside.

"What about Levi?" I asked.

"What about him?"

"...true." We actually managed to make it to the jet, but the horde had followed us. As Squalo started it up, Mammon, Bel and I fought the enemy off. Stamina low, one fangirl managed to over take me and knock me down.

"Die bitch!" She stood above me, about to hack me with her sword. For a moment, I couldn't move and could only watch as her weapon drew nearer. Then, a blast of dying will flames almost burnt her into a crisp. A rough hand grabbed the back of my collar and yanked me up.

"I expected more from you, trash," Xanxus sneered at me. I gave him an apologetic smile.

"It's Xanxus-sama!" One of the fangirls yelled. "Get him! Smother him with our love!" Xanxus scowled and pushed me behind him, taking out his other gun. He began shooting wildly as we backed up towards the jet. Bel managed to pull me in and Xanxus got in himself, making sure the fangirls weren't near the jet. We closed the door quickly, before they regrouped. I sighed in relief and slid against the wall in exhaustion.

"What they hell were those things, trash?" Xanxus glared at me.

"Fangirls," I answered. "They are monsters that completely obsess over things and devote their whole lives to that thing. They broke the wall that held them and are now probably after all the things that they love; namely, you guys and other people we know. I'm on a mission to save my harem members and anybody else close to me, while this other girl is closing the portal the fangirls came out of." Xanxus nodded in gruff approval and plopped down in a seat nearby.

"So, princess, where are we headed now?" Bel asked, pulling me up from the floor.

"CEDEF," I replied. I looked around, noticing someone missing. "Where's Lussaria?"

"He's on a mission," Mammon explained.

"Oh," I nodded in confirmation. "Okay then. I'll go tell Squalo where we're going." I looked over at Xanxus. "And get you a bottle of wine or something"

**Meanwhile, back at the Varia HQ:**

"I'm back~" Lussaria flamboyantly burst through the door and was confused to see a bunch of teenage girls. He noticed a few of them were hugging some of the officer's clothes and belongings. They seemed excited at first when he came in, but once they saw him clearly, they became disappointed.

"It's just the gay guy," one of the girls complained. The fangirls sighed in unison and returned to stealing their idols' belongings. Lussaria slumped, feeling confused and rather unappreciated.

"I'm important too!" he whined. Naturally, the fangirls ignored him. He then went to sulk in a corner for the remainder of the omake.

* * *

><p>"<em>Cào<em>, they're already under attack," I complained as Squalo, Bel and I neared the CEDEF headquarters (Xanxus had stayed in the jet while Mammon had stated "Unless I get paid, you're on your own" and disappeared). We were about to open the door when it burst open without our help, sending ten or so fangirls out with it. Iemitsu casually stepped out of the now non-existent doorway. He smiled when he spotted us.

"Ah, it's the Varia! And Cloud Chiavarone!" he said. "You guys here to help?" Wasting no time, I ran up to Tsuna's father.

"Is Basil alright?" I asked with a worried expression. He laughed my worries off.

"Of course! I wouldn't let my student get hu-"

"Master, help me!" We turned around to see a group of rabid fangirls carting off a tied up Basil. My expression dead-panned, while Iemitsu's turned serious.

"If you'll excuse me for a moment," he turned away with a very scary looking smile and calmly walked towards the group that kidnapped his apprentice. Squalo and Bel came and stood beside me as we watched in horror (at least I did. Bel watched in fascination and Squalo just had a bored expression) as Iemitsu completely massacred the fangirls that dared to kidnap Basil.

"So, we ready to move on, princess? The prince believes that the External Adviser has things under control here," Bel noted from my side. I nodded numbly.

"Yeah, we're good. Onto Japan."

* * *

><p>Namimori was even worse than I had originally thought. We were exhausted by the time we had reached the middle school. There, we discovered that the tenth generation had established a base of sorts and were fighting off the fangirls. Tsuna, in Hyper Dying Will Mode, noticed us first naturally. We headed towards him and noticed that Yamamoto, Gokudera and Ryohei were nearby their boss.<p>

"Cloud, do you know what's going on?" Tsuna asked once I was close enough.

"They're fangirls," I quickly explained the situation to Tsuna. He seemed surprised, but stayed calm.

"Tenth, there are too many!" Gokudera informed his beloved boss. Tsuna frowned and looked around.

"Retreat to the school!" We all obeyed, even Bel and Squalo (Xanxus was, again, quite content to stay in the jet, which was probably better in this situation) and went into the school. Gokudera was the last to enter, but some fangirls managed to grab him. "Gokudera!" Yamamoto and I grabbed Tsuna before he charged outside again.

"Go on without me, Tenth! I'll be fine knowing that you're safe!" The right-hand man reassured his boss.

"Bu-"

"We thank you for your noble sacrifice," I quickly said, and then slammed the door. We managed to bar it.

"That will hold them off for a while," Squalo noted. "But not forever."

"How could you just leave Gokudera?" Tsuna snapped at me, now out of Hyper Dying Will mode.

"You would have been caught if you went out there, Tsuna," I argued back. He sighed and rubbed his temples.

"I know, but I couldn't just leave him."

"This is an EXTREMELY bad situation!" The sun guardian commented.

"There was nothing you could do, Tsuna," Yamamoto comforted his friend. "We should honor his sacrifice by surviving ourselves."

"The sword brat is right," Squalo stepped forward. "We have to form a plan of attack. Voi, Vongola brat!" Tsuna jumped at the mention of his name.

"Y-yes?"

"Are any other pieces of trash here that can help?"

"I t-think Hibari is here, but I haven't seen him. We were c-chased here ourselves. Reborn had to go to Italy yesterday for something and won't be back until tomorrow." Squalo nodded thoughtfully.

"First, we have to gain gr-" Suddenly, the window burst open and fangirls flood in. A few managed to grab Squalo's hair and drag him out the window.

"Squalo!" I tried to jump after him, but Bel grabbed me before I could. Yamamoto appeared beside us, slicing a fangirl that had tried to attack.

"We have to keep moving," he said and started up the stairs. Still shocked over Squalo's loss, Bel had to carry me up the stairs. He set me down at the top of them when the group stopped.

"Big brother!" Tsuna yelled down. "What are you doing?" We looked down to see Ryohei at the bottom of the stairs.

"I'll extremely hold them off for you guys!" He said valiantly. "There's no way they could take down my extre-" He was suddenly trampled over by a wave of fangirls that had managed to break through our barred doors. We didn't even have time to mourn his loss because of the incoming threat. Running into a different hallway, we slammed the doors shut and shoved against them. The monsters on the other side threatened to break them down, but Yamamoto and Bel managed to keep the doors shut while Tsuna and I gathered enough furniture from the surrounding classrooms.

"That's not going to hold them for long," I pointed out. From the grim faces around me, I knew they were all thinking the same thing. A moment silence passed as the severity of the situation settled.

"You guys go on." We looked at Tsuna, surprised.

"We're not losing any more people!" I stubbornly told him. "We've lost enough to those monsters already!"

"Tsuna, you can't be serious," Yamamoto argued.

"The prince agrees with the peasant. We need all the people we can get." Tsuna shook his head defiantly.

"I'll use my X-burners," he explained. "That should take out most of them, and besides," he pointed at the barred door. "They're about to break through." We looked to see truth in his words. I stepped closer to Yamamoto for comfort. There was a moment where nobody moved, then Bel grabbed my arm and begin to make his way to the roof.

"Bel! We can't just leave him!"

"No, Cloud. He's right, we have to move on." I was surprised that Yamamoto was in agreement with the prince. "Tsuna can handle it, right?" Tsuna nodded confidently, and readied himself for his attack. I tried to loosen Bel's grip, but Yamamoto grabbed my other arm and they both dragged me up the steps. I struggled but couldn't fight against both of them, and frankly didn't have the energy. As we rounded the corner, I was saw the door burst open. My captors quickened their pace and we burst out onto the roof as Tsuna's X-burner went off, shaking the entire building. For a while after the sound, nothing happened. Then Yamamoto dared to check on his boss.

"Tsuna, you okay?" We were relieved when we heard an answer.

"Y-yeah, I think it worked." Yamamoto let out a relived laugh and I smiled. Bel 'hmphed' and smirked. "I'm coming up n- GAH!"

"Tsuna!"

"Wait, Yamamoto, don't!" Bel grabbed me before I followed the baseball player.

"Don't follow him, princess," He informed me. "The peasant has doomed himself." I was shaking at this point, from the many losses I suffered today. Bel released me, and I fell to my knees, trying not to have a full out panic attack. Seeing that he no longer had to hold me back, Bel barricaded the roof door and stepped back. I hugged my shoulders and stared at the ground

This was my fault. If I had warned people sooner, this wouldn't have happened. And now those monsters had taken my important people away from me. And it was all my fault. Suddenly, someone slapped me. I blinked up at Bel, shocked.

"Stop blaming yourself; it's unbecoming of the prince's future wife." He helped me up.

"What do we do now?" I asked him. He shrugged and pulled out a knife, twirling it.

"Ushishi, what do you think? We fight."

"Weapons are prohibited on school grounds." Bel and I turned, surprised to found Kyoya glaring at Bel. The prince grinned.

"Well isn't it the prefect, ushishi!" I stepped in between the two guys.

"Kyoya, have you been fighting the fangirls off too?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Fangirls?" I stared at him in disbelief.

"You mean you haven't noticed them attacking the school?" His eyes narrowed.

"Those who disturb the peace in Namimori will be bitten to death," he snarled. I blinked, beginning to piece things together.

"You were taking a nap, weren't you?" His glare intensified, giving me my answer. I sighed heavily and looked in between the two. "Well that doesn't matter now; we're all that's left, Kyoya." From being around him for so long, I saw the shock in his eyes.

"Isn't it weird they're not coming up though?" Bel pointed out. We listened and realized that the fangirls that had gotten Yamamoto and Tsuna weren't pounding on the doors. Kyoya began walking towards the door.

"Wait, Kyoya do-"

"Don't get in my way, Kumo," he warned without a backwards glance. He kicked the door down, tonfas ready, only to find no one behind it. He waited for a moment, then walked into the school. I let him, heeding his warning and trying to convince myself that he would be fine, that he could take care of himself. Bel watched him calmly, not really caring what happened to the prefect. The cloud guardian returned in a little over ten minutes with a disappointed look on his face. "The school is empty," he growled, unhappy that he did not get a fight. False hope filled me.

"So they went away?"

"Or they're regrouping for another attack," Bel pointed out thoughtfully. I frowned, seeing the logic in his statement.

"Cloud Chiavarone!" I almost jumped when I heard my name and I shared a look with Bel before we went over to join Kyoya, looking over the roof's fence. I almost screamed in frustration when I saw a whole army of fangirls standing in front of the school dates. I then realized that they were waiting for an answer.

"Yes?"

"Surrender the hotties now!" I looked between Bel and Kyoya.

"...no."

"Surrender them now!"

"Why should I you _huh choo-shung tza-jiao duh tzang-huo_!"

"Because we have your brother!" Suddenly a gagged and tied up Dino was thrown to the front of the line. I blinked. Well, I had forgotten to protect my brother from the fangirls. Whoops. "So surrender the hotties to us now!" I looked over to see Kyoya getting more and more irritated by the minute and Bel twirling his knife with even more vigor than before.

"I don't think I can do that!" I yelled back at them.

"And why not, bitch!"

"Well," I started, ignoring the insult thrown at me, "You seem to have the absurd idea that I'm in charge of them. And I'm not. Actually, I'm pretty sure nobody is." Kyoya snorted at my words and Bel snickered. The fangirls conversed among themselves, their hostage plan not turning out how they had wanted it too.

"Well, if they don't come down here right now, Dino-sama gets it!" They yelled up after they finished discussion. Dino squirmed around frantically and made muffled sounds of defiance. Kyoya scoffed.

"As if I cared what happens to that guy." Bel shrugged.

"The prince is unaffected by this." Meanwhile, I shifted back and forth on the balls of my heels, trying to think of a plan. My thinking was interrupted when I felt a familiar presence behind me.

"You have five seconds to explain to me what's going on," a very exhausted looking Mukuro demanded as I turned to face him. "And don't pretend you don't know because we both know very well that you _always know_ what going on."

"Fangirls broke the fourth wall," I said quickly. He blinked.

"Can they do that?" I shrugged.

"Apparently." I managed to step in between Kyoya and Mukuro just in time before the prefect launched himself at the illusionist. "We are not doing this right now," I hissed at him. "Now is definitely not the ti- Is that a smoke bomb?" We watched blankly as small smoke bomb rolled closer to us and went off. I was out before I hit the ground.

* * *

><p>I woke up upside down and very, extremely confused. I wriggled around to discover that I was tied up and therefore, unable to move. I also noticed that I was held up like a kill from a hunt in between the two sticks holding me. I calmed myself before I could completely freak out and began to take in my surroundings. I happened to notice a rather (extremely) large pile of pink, red, and purple Valentine's Day gifts in front of my sticks. I burst out laughing when I saw a familiar pineapple-headed illusionist's head sticking out of the middle of it.<p>

"You look ridiculous!" I managed to choke out in between fits of laughter. His expression remained un-amused.

"It's not like you're in a better position, little Chiavarone," he snarked back. I immediately stopped laughing and frowned. "But I'm much more amused by the Skylark's position in all of this." He gestured his head to the right. I followed his eyes until I met an even bigger pile of Valentines and goodies with a nasty killer intent radiating off of it. I blinked.

"Is... is that Kyoya?"

"Indeed it is," Mukuro said with a slight smile on his face. "I have to say, he has made this situation a whole lot funnier."

"And they're able to hold him?" I asked in disbelief. "And you?"

"Unfortunately we have underestimated these fangirls," he explained, his earlier frown returning. "They have formidable bonding that make our flames useless. They're quite scary actually."

"And with you saying that, it means something," I sighed. I noticed the other piles or red, pink and purple around us. "Is that everyone else?" Mukuro nodded.

"They seem to worship us, but they hate you," he explained. "I believe they were talking about sacrificing you earlier."

"Then that means that we just have to escape quicker," I emphasized, starting to wiggle around.

"It's no use, Cloud!" Came the muffled voice of Yamamoto. "We've already tried everything." I was about to rebuke when a group of fangirls returned.

"Oh, goody! You're awake," the head of the group said. "We were hoping you would be awake when we sacrificed you to the all might Akira-sama."

"All hail the mighty Akira-sama!" Chorused the fangirls behind her.

"Wait, wait! Can't we talk this out? You know, negotiate something?" I tried to reason with them as they began to cart me away.

"The time for negotiating is over, hotty-stealer!" One of them shouted. "As soon as you are out of the way, we will return to loving the hotties and then return to our world with them, where they will be with us for eternity!"

"I would like to disagree with that statement," I heard Mukuro argue as they carried me off.

"VOOOOOIII! GET THESE FUCKING FRILLY THINGS OFF OF ME!" And now we knew that the 5th largest pile was Squalo.

"Listen," I began warming up my-mind-changing-enlightening-hero-monologue-speech-thing, "I know that you love these guys, but you have to think of their feelings. After all, here, they are real people an- Is that a tank?"

"You can't distract us, bitch!"

"No seriously, there is a tank right there, coming straight for us."

"Please, as if we would believe such a ob- OH MY AKIRA-SAMA!" They scattered as the tank tore through the group, dropping me in the process. I watched in horror as the tank neared me and tried to roll away, but failed. I closed my eyes, waiting for death (for real this time). I opened them when I realized nothing happening to me, only to find the tank had stopped only a few inches away from me. I rolled over so that I was looking up. I heard the tank hatch open and in the next second I was staring at the grinning face of the strange girl I had met earlier.

"Okay, on a scale of one to ten," she started, jumping down ungracefully form the top, bringing out a ring of keys and fiddling with them. "With ten being bitchin, and one being blah, what would you rate my epic entrance? Personally I think it was totally awesome." I wriggled out of my chains when she had unlocked the lock holding them.

"I think it was a little over dramatic," I stated dryly. She shrugged and moved on to the piles, working on unlocking the guys next.

"Okay, so more are going to be coming soon since they're expecting to sacrifice you," she explained as she dug through the pile Tsuna was completely buried under. "So we need to find the fastest way to eliminate them. We don't have to worry about more since I ever so kindly closed the fourth wall. Your welcome for that, by the by."

"Wasn't it your fault it was broken into anyway?"

"...moving on," she muttered after giving me a death-glare. She pulled a stunned looking Tsuna out of his pile and handed him the keys. "You get all the others out of here. Me and doll-face over there are going to get rid of the fangirls."

"And how are we going to do that?" I asked with my hands on my hips.

"And we can't just leave you guys behind," Tsuna argued. "Even though I don't know who you are...?" He eyed the strange girl suspiciously. She waved him off and pushed him towards Yamamoto's pile.

"It's fine, we got this. I got a nuke in the tank!" We stared at her.

"... how the _cào _did you get a nuke? And a tank for that matter?" She rubbed the back of her head awkwardly.

"I may or may not have stolen them and many more weapons from a military base, but rest assured it's all for a good cause." We continued to stare at her. She huffed and grabbed my arm, dragging me to the tank. "Just shut up and follow me, and you get out of here; we've got some fangirls to get rid of."

* * *

><p>After the strange girl somehow managed to convince Tsuna to move and get away, we jumped in the tank and headed off to the heart of the camp the fangirls had set up.<p>

"I took out the guards that were guarding you guys, and by took out, I mean ran over with a tank," She explained as she slowed down when we reached our destination. "The rest are at the place where they were planning to sacrifice you; apparently it was something they all wanted to see." She gathered and assortment of military weapons and clambered out of the tank. I followed her hesitantly, still not quite knowing what to think of her. She motioned for me to follow her over a hill and looked over. I eyed the largest group of fangirls I had seen that day.

"Is that all of them?"

"Yep. And luckily, they're all in one place, which makes it easy for us. I can nuke them, and it will all be over."

"Wait, then why did you need me if you can nuke them by yourself?"

"Mostly for moral support and in order to keep the first person p.o.v."

"... I'm not even going to ask. Wait, you said nuke, right?" She nodded. "Won't that kill us too?"

"It will if we don't get out of here fast enough. That's why I told the guys to scram," She explained simply. I stared at her in disbelief.

"And how exactly are we going to do that?" She rolled her eyes and held up her wrist.

"With a Vortex Manipulator," She pointed to the leather bracelet around her wrist, flipping a flap to show a small panel. "How else?" I stared at it in disbelief, but before I could call her completely insane and off her rockers, she was already set to fire the nuke.

"Wait, do-"

"DIE YOU PRISTINE FRENCH HOOKERS!" She quickly fired the nuke and grabbed my arm, pressing a button on her leather bracelet. I closed my eyes, expecting death for the second time that day. I heard a zapping sound and felt my body hit the ground. I blinked in surprise, finding myself to be alive. "Hey, it actually worked!" The girl smiled widely, seeming quite proud of herself. "Now I set it so that we would go back in time right before I shot it, so it should go off-" There was a giant explosion in the distance. The wind hit us, ruffling our hair. "And there it is." I stared at her with wide eyes.

"Did you just say you were surprised it worked, as in you weren't sure we would make it out alive?"

"I hope the guys got away in time too," she noted idly, ignoring my question.

"Do you plan anything?" I asked her with a dead-pan expression. She shrugged.

"I rely more on improv than anything."

"Cloud, you made it!" I looked up to see Tsuna running towards us with the rest following (Kyoya was at the back, daring daggers at Mukuro, but seemed tamed for the time being). "We were worried when we saw the explosion." I stood up to greet them.

"Don't worry, the fangirls should be all gone now," I looked back at the strange girl who was staring dreamily at Kyoya. "Right?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah! Right, that probably shouldn't happen again. Yeah," she nodded vigorously. Dino came up and clapped my shoulder.

"I'm just glad you didn't get hurt, sis," he relented, looking relieved.

"Since this fucking day is about over with, we're heading back to Italy," Squalo announced and gestured to Bel to follow. He began walking off, mumbling something about 'shitty bosses being too lazy to help his subordinates when they get kidnapped by rabid fangirls'. Bel snickered and followed.

"See ya around, princess~" He nodded to me as he left. I waved after him.

"Well," Mukuro started, turning to face Kyoya. "As much as I'd love to mess with the skylark, I'm afraid I've had enough excitement for today. Ciao, Vongola, Little Chiavarone." And with a wave of his hand, he dissolved into mist. Kyoya simply huffed and walked off, leaving us with no goodbye, which was expected of him. Soon it was just Dino, me, Tsuna, the remainder of Tsuna's guardians and the strange girl.

"Well, this has been an adventure," she stated. We all stared at her.

"Who are you again?" Dino asked. She laughed nervously.

"Just a person... a goddess person? Yeah, um, I think that maybe it's time to end this omake. Happy Valentine's Day everyone!"

"Wait, what do you mean by en-"

**THE END**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Soooo this kind of turned into a Fangirl Apocalypse zombie thing... I'm not sorry? It actually just kind of happened. And let's just pretend that I am not late and that this was totally posted on Valentine's Day. Yeah. I guess that this chapter is also technically a self insert. Anywho, Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I had this idea floating around for a while, so it was fun to actually get this chaotic, wild idea out. Hope you liked it!**

**Sorry, not sorry for leaving you guys with a kind of cliff hanger last chapter. By the by, anyone have any guess on where Cloud is going to right now/ who she is going to meet? **

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question (I'm going to start doing this, just out of curiousity):**

**What's your favorite arc/arcs?**

**Mine are the Varia Arc and the Rainbow Representative Arc. The Varia Arc because, well, the Varia, and the Rainbow Arc because it was basically all the characters in the whole entire series battling it out, and even though the last chapter did not satisfy me, that was a great last arc and a smart way to bring all the characters together.**

**-Klu**


	24. The Reminder

**Chapter 24: Reminder**

**I don't own KHR, but sadly, I do own my own stupidity**

* * *

><p><strong> "Worry less about the person you once were, or the person you dream you someday will be. Worry about the person you are now. Or, don't even worry, just be that person. Be the best version of that person you can be."<strong>

**-Welcome to Night Vale**

* * *

><p><em>"Do you know you?"<em>

There was silence as we stared at each other. Mukuro broke that silence.

"I say that we kill her," he drawled, twirling his trident in a bored manner, the excitement of the chase now wearing off. I turned back to him with an annoyed expression.

"We are not killing her," I stated. He rolled his eyes.

"As if you could stop me, Little Chiavarone."

"My mind, remember?"

"No it's not." I looked back at the girl and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes it is," I shot back.

"Is not."

"Is too.

"Is not!"

"Is too!" I stomped my foot and glared at the little girl chained to the tree. Mukuro sighed behind me.

"And now I'm contemplating killing both of you," he murmured. "Although, it is interesting how this girl has the same effects on your mind as you do." I turned back to him and looked up at him, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Well for one thing, you both turn into children when you act like children." I blinked and looked down, just now noticing my state. I turned to see the prisoner was also a child.

"I see your point," I admitted. The girl bristled behind us.

"Don't ignore me!" We turned back to her with blank expressions.

"You know, she actually does look a bit familiar." Now back to normal size, I approached her again, looking past her orange mess of hair and into her face. I froze when I realized just who she was. "_Wuh duh ma huh tah duh fong kwong duh wai shung_, she's me." Mukuro stared at me, trying to comprehend my words.

"Care to elaborate, little Chiavarone?" The girl merely rolled her eyes and scoffed.

"About time you recognized yourself," she muttered cynically.

"Well, she's not me," I awkwardly explained, causing her eyes to snap up at me. "She was me, at least, we're not the same person." I continued when I saw Mukuro's annoyed expression. "She's the old me; my past self from my other life. But, we're different, so we're not the same person." Mukuro stared at me for a while, taking this information in. Then he turned away, rubbing his temples.

"God, now there's two of you..." I huffed and crossed my arms, turning back to the girl.

"So, if you're the old m-" I corrected myself quickly. "If you're Hannah then how come you're here? How can you be here?"

"She must have always been here in the back of your mind ever since you've entered this... world," Mukuro inputted, now over the fact that he had both of us to deal with. "But it seems as if she's not very happy it. If we can't eliminate her, then it be wise to keep her locked up so that she can't cause any damage to your already fragile mind."

"Damn right I'm not happy about!" Hannah snarled, baring against her chains. "You took my life from me! It's only natural that I should try to take it back. And as for killing me, I'd like to see you try!" She gestured her head towards me. "If you kill me, you kill her; we're connected, so if I go down _Cloud_ is going down with me."

"She could be bluffing," Mukuro noted. I shook my head.

"Look, we're not going to kill you."

"We're not?" Mukuro echoed.

"No, we're not," I responded with a hard look. He sighed and dissolved his trident, looking a bit disappointed. I held back an eye roll as I faced Hannah again. She met me with a glare. "Even if there was a chance of killing you without me dying, I wouldn't do it. As cynical and damaged as you are, you're still a part of me, and I can't let go of that." A warm breeze passed through the clearing as I finished.

"That was so cheesy it almost made me throw up," Hannah stated dryly.

"I have to agree with her, Little Chiavarone; that was awful." I flicked them both off and continued.

"And you could help us," I added with a strained smile. She scoffed.

"Why would I help you of all people?" Hannah sneered. I shrugged.

"A change of heart? The possibility of not being tied to a tree for the rest of your life- well, I guess it would be technically be my life, but you get the point." She huffed and turned her head away, blankly ignoring me at this point. I shrugged, and left her alone, feeling like I at least got somewhere with her.

"I better get going," I told Mukuro. "I've got a person to meet, flames to discover and weapons to get and utilize; I'm swamped. We can go over the plan later."

"Kufufu, amusing as always, Little Chiavarone. Until we meet again." He waved his hand and everything turned to darkness.

* * *

><p>"Well, this is where he said to be when I contacted him..." I mumbled half-heartedly, glancing around the clearing in the middle of the forest. I huffed in annoyance, already irritated by the effort I had to put forth just to get here. I tensed slightly when I heard a twig snap behind me, Colonello's training immediately kicking in. Despite my awareness, my stance remained casual, so it wouldn't reveal that I was aware of my stalkers. Once I had a better grip on my rifle bag I swung it around, feeling it hit something solid. Then I spun that around to knock out the other noise running towards me. I blinked in surprise when two bodies flickered into view. I knelt down and poked the strange body suits, finding them to be slightly familiar.<p>

_"I see that my subordinates were useless. What do you want?"_ The voice echoed from all around, startling me. I stayed calm and alert as I answered him.

"I'm Cloud Chaivarone. I contacted you earlier about weapons and flames. I was hoping you could help me."

_"And why would I do that? And how did you get my contact information?"_

"Reborn got me in contact with Colonello and Colonello gave me contact information about you."

_"I have no ties to those people. Are you really as dumb to think that just mentioning their names will do you any good?"_ I shrugged.

"Worth a shot. Well, if that won't get you to help me, why don't I help you?"

_"... explain."_

"You like experiments, right?" A scoffing sound sounded through the hidden speakers.

_"I don't just 'like' them brat. They're my life."_

"Then, I'll willingly test your experiments. You get a new lab rat, I get new toys. It's a win-win, situation."

_"..."_ I waited patiently as he made his decision. "_Fine. I'll accept your deal, Cloud Chiavarone."_ I smiled, knowing that he was watching somewhere through hidden cameras.

"Thanks, Verde."

* * *

><p>"This is looks a bit dangerous."<p>

"Don't be ridiculous; I wouldn't try to kill my new test subject on the first day." After hearing that statement, I decided to remain quiet as the small scientist continued strapping the strange and rather bulky machine to arm and hand.

"What are we even doing anyway?" Verde huffed in annoyance at my question.

"This is a machine of my own creation that shows what flame type subjects have. Not only does it distinguish what type, but it also determines the intensity of the flames and the amount a subject has. Therefore, it is extremely helpful in testing and figuring out a subject's limitation and what possibilities they have."

"Ah, I see." I nodded numbly. "So, would it be correct to assume that it's impossible to just conjure dying will flames from your hand." Verde looked at me with a calculating expression.

"I would not rule out that it was impossible, however, I would not expect to see that happening, unless the flames were extremely powerful or the user was. Usually, in order to see the dying will flames, there needs to be a conductor of sorts; something to transmit the flames from inside your body so they can be used. But first, in order, we need to find out what type of flames you have so we can begin testing." He finished securing the straps of the machine and made his way over to one his computers.

"I need you to concentrate on creating your dying will flames," he explained. I nodded on confirmation and begin to concentrate. I just have to think of something worth fighting for, right? If that was the question, then the answer is simple; family. I simply thought of my family and people I loved. Protecting them was my sole reason and with just simply thinking of that, a warm feeling envelope my hand. Verde's eyes lit up as he assessed the information the machine was sending to the screen. I frowned, disappointed that because of the machine, I couldn't see any flames.

"Hm," I looked over to see Verde drinking in the information on the screen with a small smirk. "This is interesting. It seems I was right to let you be my new lab rat." I held back a shudder, not really liking where this was going. Verde glanced over at me again, eyes calculating. "I thought you looked familiar…" he muttered, almost to himself.

"What?"

"Nothing you need to worry about," He said curtly, making his way back over to me.

"So, what type of flames do I have?" I asked, almost reluctantly.

"Rain," he answered. I stared at him. "Also cloud flames." I let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, thank _god. _It would be pretty stupid if 'Cloud' didn't have cloud flames." Verde remained unamused by my note.

"And sun flames." I went back to my blank expression.

"Are you saying that I have rain, cloud and sun flames?" I pulled my legs up so that I was sitting crossed legged on the lab table. He nodded.

"Rain seems to be your overall dominate type, but you also have cloud and sun attributes. This makes you quite the interesting test subject. In fact, you're the first one I've had that has _three_ types." I nodded, still taking in this information. I frowned when a certain thought entered my head.

"This means that I'll have even more test than planned, doesn't it."

"Correct." I let out a long, exasperated sigh.

"Let's just get this over with so that I can get my new 'toys' sooner."

* * *

><p>"Duplicate the ring." I picked up the metal ring in front of me, and begin concentrating. A warm feeling, the same feeling I was getting more and more used to as each day here passed, enveloped my hand, the heart of the feeling being the ring. I mentally imagined there being two rings, and soon enough, I felt the one ring duplicate in my hand. I opened my hand and let the two rings fall out onto the table.<p>

"When are we going to start working on other things?" I asked Verde as he came over to inspect the rings.

"These test are simply for getting you used to using your dying will flames. This will make future tests easier to accomplish," Verde explained as he hopped onto his stepping stool to reach the table.

"So, basically, 'you've got to walk before you run'?" I confirmed.

"Correct. Although, I am still making prototypes to use with your multiple flames."

"Yeah, and I was thinking," I leaned on the table, propping my head up with my arms. "If you could make bullets out of this same metal, then could I use my cloud flames to duplicate one bullet, making it so that I could theoretically have an endless supply of bullets? Well, at least until I run out of flames." Verde eyed me with a bored expression.

"Did you think that I wouldn't have already thought of that, brat?" I frowned and shrugged.

"Well, yeah, but I wanted to sound smart." He rolled his eyes, and began making his way to the ground.

"I've already started remodeling your guns so they are compatible to your cloud flames. Even with your three types, at the moment, I can only make weapon compatible with one type."

"Right, so my guns will go with cloud flames, and maybe my rifle with rain flames?" I asked. "I was thinking," he rolled his eyes as I said this, "that since rain flames have a tranquility attribute and what not, that I could shoot people and numb the part of their body that I shoot. In theory, of course." Verde thought over my explanation, stroking his chin.

"Your flames aren't very intense," he started, "So in theory, I could modify your rifle where it could shoot pure rain cloud bullets, and as long as you don't hit your target in the head or heart, then you could neutralize any other body part you hit. Your rain flames would spread throughput that body part, making it numb and unable to function for a certain amount of time. Make a note to test how long you can nullify a body part and the amount of flames it takes," He motioned for me to get the pen and paper lying nearby.

"What would happen if I hit them in the head or heart?" I snapped him out of his thoughts.

"If you shot them with pure rain flames and the flames got to their brain, if would either kill them or send them into a coma. As for the heart, if would stop motion, therefore killing them," he bluntly explained.

"Ah, nice to know. Anything else I should know about my flames?"

"Along with them not being very intense, you don't have an abundance of them. However, you do have an above average control over them, which works to your advantage. If you use your control wisely, then you can spread out the use of your flames to make them last longer. But, you also need to avoid over using them. This is why we're starting with small tasks like duplicating the rings."

"And what would happen if I used too many flames?" I asked.

"You would die."

* * *

><p>"Why am I going with you again?"<p>

"You are acting as my body guard because my usual guards are out on missions."

"I'm actually flattered that you trust me enough to guard you," I said with a little snark.

"Don't be," Verde retorted. "You're only here out of convenience." I snorted at his answer.

"So, what exactly are we doing in Russia?" I asked, idly looking out the window of the jet.

"I'm delivering some high-tech weapons to the Giegue Family," he explained.

"Is that what the suitcase is for?" He nodded. I mulled over the name for a bit, then paled when I remembered who they were.

"This family wouldn't happen to be call the 'Grave Diggers' by any chance?" He nodded again. I fidgeted, suddenly nervous. The scientist snorted at my discomfort.

"Calm down, brat. They wouldn't dare hurt an associate of mine." I brightened up, feeling good thinking that he might have actually grown to care for me after the time I've spent with him, even if it was just a little bit. "Besides, you're a valuable test subject." And with that, that good feeling popped like a balloon. I huffed and gave him the silent treatment for the rest of the plane ride (not that he cared). I calmed myself as we landed, putting a blank face on. It would be a lie to say that I was not intimidated when we stepped off of the plane and faced the group waiting for us. With the brief case in hand, I followed Verde as he approached the group with an indifferent face.

There were 6 of them in group, all wearing almost identical skull looking mask which made them look even more intimidating. My eyes were drawn to what looked to be the youngest, who seemed to be a girl. I looked away, and tried not to stare at any one of them. The tallest one stepped forward, establishing himself as the leader and spoke.

"кто она?" (1)

"Просто ассоциированным," Verde answered. "Кто-то, чтобы сопровождать меня в поездке." (2)

"Вы не доверяете нам?" (3)

"Я предпочитаю быть осторожным. Давайте начнем, чтобы мы могли покончить с этим." (4) Verde's tone sounded impatient. I shifted my feet, not even trying to follow the conversation. I made a mental note to get Bel to teach me Russian for future reference. I had always been fond of the language for some reason, but had never gotten around to learning it.

"Нетерпеливый как всегда, Зеленый. Давайте начнем." (5) He motioned for us to follow as he turned and headed for the warehouse looking building. As we walked past them, three of them fell into step behind me. We entered and made our way through many hallways. Verde looked up at me when the group stopped.

"Stay out here," he ordered as he took the suitcase from me. "Don't wander off." I held back a snort as he entered the room we stopped in front of. Trying to keep a casual stance, but at the same time remaining alert, I leaned against the wall.

"Почему я должен оставаться здесь?" (6) I noticed the girl from before talking with an argumentative tone to the leader.

"Потому что мы должны кого-то смотреть незнакомца, чтобы убедиться, что она ничего не делает. Подождите здесь, и никакого утверждения. Ничего не начать." (7) The man quickly turned and went into the room, closing the door behind him. The girl made an annoyed sound and turned to me. I kept a calm face and looked into the mask she was wearing, still mentally regretting not learning Russian. She crossed her arms and made a defensive stance.

"Кто ты?" (8) I blinked, and looked around. Realizing she was talking to me, I made a shrugging motion, attempting to say that I had no idea what she was saying. She repeated the question. I sighed, moving onto to another tactic.

"Do you speak Italian?" I tried in my native tongue. From the tilt of her head, I assumed she didn't, seeing that I did not have facial expression to go by. Okay, next language. Let's go with German.

_"Do you speak German?" _There was a pause, and for a while I was thinking of moving on to English.

_"Yes,"_ she said after a pause. _"Who are you?"_

_"Cloud Chiavarone," _I answered truthfully.

_"Chiavarone? As in the Italian mafia family?"_ I nodded. _"Why are you here?"_

_"I am not here with the Chiavarone," _I quickly explained. _"I am simply accompanying Verde."_

_"What is your relation to the Chiavarone?"_ I eyed her warily.

_"I'd rather not disclose that information,"_ I said coolly. _"Tell me about yourself first, then I will give you more information about me." _I vaguely heard an amused snort beneath her mask.

_"Fine, little horse,"_ she relented. "_I am Zhanna of the Giegue Family." _She stepped closer to me. Although she was the shortest out of the group of her family members, she easily towered over me. I estimated her height to be about 6'3, possibly 6'4. Altogether, with her strong build, height and mask, she had quite the intimidating appearance. Maybe it was my familiarity with the Varia, or just plain stupidity, but I didn't step back as she approached. I assumed she was staring me in the eyes in the next few moments that passed, so I stared right back in spots where I guessed her eyes were. I seemed to have passed some sort of test as she let out a bark of laughter and stepped back._ "I like you, little horse!"_ she admitted, then moved her hand to take her mask off. _"You have guts." _I eventually let out a relieved laugh of my own, the earlier tension now gone.

I was a bit surprised when she revealed her face. It was covered in scars and one of her eyes was noticeable darker brown than the other. A Glasgow Grin spread across her left cheek. Over all, she had a very ruff appearance. She noticed my stare and smirked. _"Pretty, isn't it?"_ She asked. I shrugged.

_"It's pretty cool, actually,"_ I admitted. _"Are your eyes like that naturally, or is it from an injury?"_ She raised an eyebrow at my curiosity.

_"Nothing really fazes you, does it?"_ I shrugged again.

_"Well, my best friend is a homicidal maniac,"_ I admitted. She snorted again, a sound I was getting used to by this point. I blinked up at her. "_I'm not kidding."_ She eyed me thoughtfully.

_"You sound like you have weird friends, little horse."_

_"I guess I do. You want to join the group?"_ I asked on a whim, not really expecting an answer from this intimidating, tall, muscular, Russian girl I barely knew. I didn't expect an answer, but she gave me one.

_"Sure. Why not, little horse?"_

* * *

><p>"I made a friend today." She glared at me. I sighed and looked away, trying to focus instead on the scenery of my mind garden. Mukuro hadn't shown up, so it was just me and Hannah, along with awkward, intense silence. "Okay, look," I started. "We both know you don't like this; I don't like this either. I didn't even know you were here in my head. I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry for everything." I continued when she didn't say anything. "But that's in the past. Right now, I have other people to protect, and it would be a lot easier to do that if I have your help. I know you're not ready to forgive me now, maybe not ever, but at least try to work with me a little bit." She lowered her eyes and look away. I sighed and pushed myself up from the ground. I snapped my fingers and the chains holding her to the tree dissolved into flower petals. Her eyes widened in surprise. She shakily pushed herself up and walked a few steps.<p>

"Don't get too excited," I warned her. I pointed to the silver chain wrapped around her ankle, still anchoring her to the tree. "I can't give you a completely free rein, but I can let you walk around a bit, maybe look at some memories. There are a lot of good ones… from both our lives." I turned to leave, but stopped when I heard a voice behind me.

"Thank you... Cloud."

"You're welcome, Hannah," I answered with a small smile.

* * *

><p>Verde handed me my new rifle. I eyed it lovingly.<p>

"Now I have my Cloud flame guns, my rain flame rifle, and I just need a sun flame weapon," I noted. "Can it have something to do with healing?"

"What?" I stared at him.

"Healing," I elaborated. "Sun flames is activation, right?" He stared at me, then that familiar calculating look washed over his face.

"I suppose they could be used for healing, but we haven't worked with it yet…" he scowled, but it came out as more of a pout. "Of course, that should be a natural assumption. We worked with bonding with her, and she has the same sort of flames, if not only slightly different… _he's_ probably already working with this, dammit…." I blinked, losing interest in his ramblings and realizing I just came up with the idea that sun flames can heal before it was supposed to happen. Oh well. It was going to happen anyway. Yeah. "We'll begin working as soon as I get a prototype ready," Verde explained as he walked out, scribbling notes on a note pad as he went. "Gloves would be an ideal form to produce the flames in order to heal the exact area..." he exited out the door mumbling again. I went back to gushing over my new toys, and had every intention to go out to practice with it when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I answered it absentmindedly, a bit annoyed that I was interrupted.

"Hello?"

_"Sorry, 'sis, but I'm your going have to come back from your vacation a bit early."_ I was confused for a second, then I remembered that Ivan and Bono had told Dino that I had extended my vacation in Mafia Land for a couple more weeks. I quickly recovered from my confusion.

"And why's that, Bro?"

_"I need you to come to Japan right away."_

"Because...?"

_"The Vongola Rings are on the move, and the Varia are after them. Tsuna and his friends are in trouble and we're helping them."_ I almost dropped the phone out of mere shock. Of course, how could I forget one of the most important arcs?

"Right, right, I'll come to Japan as soon as possible. You go ahead, and I'll meet you there," I quickly told Dino and shut the phone before he could reply. I calmed myself and shouldered my new rifle, moving out of the room to inform Verde of my early leave.

The Varia Arc is here.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Introducing Zhanna! The kick ass Russian assassin who will be appearing again. If I get the chance, I will be adding another one in the group with Cloud and Zhanna, but only if I have time, because I can't force it to happen. I hope y'all don't mind another OC, but I didn't want to force a cannon friend relationship that wouldn't be going anywhere.**

**Also, I hope my flame theories are alright with you guys. I'm going to be putting a lot of ideas like that in. Speaking of which, I MAY POSSIBLY BE LOOKING FOR A BETA. I don't know, I've never had one before, but I kind of want someone to talk to about the plot, and my ideas for the story to see if they would work and of course, to proof read and all that jazz.**

**Now, I'm on spring break this week and the show I was stage managing just ended, so I will defs be updating again in the next couple days, but after that I am going to see Wicked, so my weekend will be busy, and then I will be starting work again, so that will fill up my schedule.**

**Welp, hoped y'all like the chapter. Oh, and as for the Russian in it, since it's in Cloud perspective and she doesn't know Russian, it was meant to be confusing and for you to have no idea what they were saying, because Cloud had no idea what they were saying, but translations are at the bottom. Sorry for the wait!**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question:**

**What is your favorite anime (if it's KHR, then what is your second favorite)?**

**Mine would have to be K. I don't like when things drag out and get complicated, but this anime, with its 13 episodes, has to be my all time favorite. At the beginning you have no idea what's going on, so you have to keep watching and then, by episode 5 or 6, they explain a little bit then BAM! Something else gets thrown in your face and you have absolutely no idea what's going on anymore. I love it so much and I hear they are making a movie instead of another season..." I dunno, but I actually cried at the end of it and that saying a lot because I am not a crier. Also, the characters are phenomenal.**

**Ahem. Sorry, my fangirl started up. But seriously, it was TORTURE waiting for a new episode every week. I highly recommend K to everyone. Other than that, I recently caught up with Kill La Kill, which is another good one. Revealing, but good. Durarara would be a VERY close second. So in order, my list would be K, Durarara and probably Kill la Kill or Death Note. *Shrugs* I read manga more than I watch anime.**

**-Klu**

**Translation (In order from where Verde is talking to the leader to Zhanna's first few sentences)**

**(1) Who is she?**

**(2) Just an associate. Somebody to accompany me on the trip.**

**(3) You do not trust us?**

**(4) I prefer to be cautious. Let's start, so we can get this over with.**

**(5) Impatient as always, Green. Let's go.**

**(6) Why do I have to stay here?**

**(7) Because, we need someone to watch the stranger to make sure she does not do anything. Wait here and no arguing. Don't start anything.**

**(8) Who are you?**


	25. When Simplicity Ends

**Chapter 25: When Simplicity Ends**

**I don't own KHR or LOTR. Seriously, I should not be trust with anything with power, much less the One Ring.**

* * *

><p><strong>"The sun is simple. A sword is simple. A storm is simple. Behind everything simple is a huge tail of complicated."<strong>

**-Terry Pratchett (Toad: I shall Wear Midnight)**

* * *

><p>"I don't remember saying that I was allowing you to leave early. You have been a valuable test subject up to this point, after all."<p>

"Sorry, Verde, but it's really important." He gave me a bored stare, then huffed in annoyance.

"Fine. Take these with you." He handed me a pair of regular looking black gloves.

"And these are...?"

"These gloves are the prototype sun gloves used for healing. Now, before you go crazy with them and do anything stupid, remember that these are prototypes and not to overuse your flames. These haven't been tested yet, so be careful when you use them." I nodded and folded the gloves to put in my back pack.

"Anything else, Mr. Scientist?"

"Contact me immediately after you use the gloves."

"Got it," I said, turning my back on him and beginning to walk out the door.

"And remember to try not to let anybody else see them; I don't want my invention being misused."

"Okay, _Dad_. Thanks for everything."

"Just don't break my inventions I gave you, brat."

* * *

><p>I briskly walked into the hospital Dino had rented out, already annoyed that I had missed Squalo's big entrance. I suppose it was for the best, considering that I was still dealing with pre-emotional turmoil that is soon to come because of the fact that the people I'm allying myself with are going up against a group of people I'm close to (close probably isn't the best word to describe it, but it's one of the more accurate words that can be used to describe my relationship with the Varia). Yeah. My plan I've come up with thus far is to mostly stay out of the whole thing and just help Dino train Kyoya. That's as far as I think I should go into this, but with the amount of luck I have, I'll get dragged deeper into it sooner or later.<p>

As I was walking down the hallways, absorbed in my own thoughts, I failed to notice Tsuna walking in the opposite direction. Between the two of us, we managed to run right into each other. Our foreheads collided and Tsuna went back, sprawling out on the floor. I managed to steady my position and not fall on the floor like my clumsy 'brother'.

"Nice going there, graceful," I dryly commented, then moved to help him up.

"Cloud! What are you doing here?" Tsuna asked as I pulled him to a standing position. "Don't tell me you're in on this ring thing too?!"

"Well, not at the moment," I answered truthfully, crossing my arms, "but I probably will be sooner or later." Tsuna groaned and clutched his head.

"I don't know what I'm going to do! I don't want anything to do with this!" I sighed and patted his head sympathetically.

"Okay, then Tuna-fish," I started, leaning down to look him in the eye in his hunched pose. "What if your family ends up being threatened?" The answer was immediate.

"I'll protect them, of course!"

"Then there's your answer," I concluded, giving him an assured pat on the head as I continued down the hallway. "Just remember that and you'll be fine. Ciao." I left him with a thoughtful expression on his face and proceeded to my destination.

"Hello?" I opened the door and stuck my head in to see Reborn, Romario and Dino at the end of a conversation and a very cute boy laying on the hospital bed recovering. "_Hello_," I restated and made for the bed. Dino, seeing my intent, managed to grab me before I reached my goal.

"Hey there 'sis," He said forcefully, swinging his arm around me and pulling me back. "Long time no see! How was Mafia Land?" I quickly recovered so he wouldn't see the confusion on my face.

"Right. Mafia Land. It was great. Lots of fun and sun and… stuff." Romario seemed to notice my bluff and gave me an amused, yet hard look. I stuck my tongue out at him (without Dino seeing of course. I didn't care if Reborn knew because he _always_ knows), and decided to change the subject so I didn't dig a deeper hole for myself. "So, care to give your darling sister a run down?"

"Gladly," Dino answered, releasing me. "Basil here tried to deliver decoy rings to Tsuna, but he was pursued by Squalo, who I know you're already familiar with."

"Too familiar with actually," I noted with a small smile, thinking of my extremely loud older brother figure of sorts. "Continue."

"Squalo got the fake rings, giving us time before the rest of the Varia arrive."

"Now, as soon as Iemitsu gives the guardians their rings, training will start to prepare for the battle against the Varia," Reborn finished.

"Ah, I see," I inputted absent mindlessly with my eyes sneaking over to Basil. Looking past his cuteness, I began visually examining his injuries. "When will he recover?"

"He should wake up today or tomorrow. He's been through a lot, and needs rest," Reborn informed me. "And when he's well enough, I plan for him to help Tsuna with his training. In the meantime, I'm heading back. Ciao." And with that, the small hitman walked out the room.

"Bono and Ivan headed to the hotel with the rest of my things," I informed my brother.

"Right, and we should probably head back too since we're done here," He sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I'll get someone to stay here in case Basil wakes up."

"I can stay here," I suggested, a plan forming in my head. Dino raised an eyebrow and gave me an accusing look. I kept myself calm, wondering if I said that a little too quickly.

"You can't ask a boy who just got beaten to a pulp to be in your harem as soon as he wakes up," he scolded me. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not staying for that reason, mostly," I said the last part quietly so Dino wouldn't hear. "And besides, I have medical knowledge, remember? So I'll be able to take care of him when he wakes up." Dino scratched his chin, thinking. I pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down, pulling out a book from my backpack. "And I've got things to keep me occupied while I'm waiting. Plus, we both know you have more important stuff to do."

"Fine," Dino sighed. "But I'm still sending someone by later to check up on you." He began walking out then noticed my book. "Is that Grey's Anatomy?"

"Yes. I'm reading it again, adding notes Gabriela sent me from her classes."

"...Okay, then. See you later. And no funny business. Don't make me regret leaving you alone."

"Will do, Bro," I waved them off as the made their way out the door. I waited for a full 4 minutes before I dug into my backpack and pulled out my sun gloves. I slipped them on and approached Basil, pulling off the bandage on his cheek and gently placing my fingers on the cut. I took a deep breath and began concentrating, putting all my effort into producing flames. My determination didn't waver as yellow flames sparked to life on my fingertips. Using what Verde calls my 'excellent flame control' I managed to heal all the injuries on his face. By the time I was moving onto his arm, my breathing began to get heavier and sweat beaded down my face. I collapsed into the chair after managing to heal both his arms, deciding to try to heal his chest when he was actually awake for two reasons. One, it would be a bit awkward to take his shirt off since we're of opposite sex and he was unconscious and all (I highly doubt I would be able to talk my way out of it if Dino walked in on that). Two, I was just too worn out from healing just his face and arms to do anything else, even stand.

Therefore, with that statement, I curled up in my chair beside the hospital bed and slipped into blissful sleep.

* * *

><p>Seeing as tired as I was, I did not appreciate losing sleep over Mukuro's visit.<p>

"What?" I said irritably as I flopped into the grassy ground, not even bothering to give Mukuro or Hannah a proper greeting.

"I received a ring from Sawada Iemitsu," Mukuro said, getting straight to the point. "Or rather, Chrome did."

"So when's the wedding," I snidely commented. I was ignored by both of them, naturally.

"So the ring battles are starting up?" Hannah asked, her interest piqued.

"Yep," I answered, haven gotten used to the fact that a lot of my brilliant comments were ignored. "But really, I don't think I need to tell you anything, Mukuro," I informed the illusionist. "Other than basic information about the Ring Battle. You win your fight pretty easily after Chrome is down."

"Kufufufu, I see. So the opponent is weak?"

"I wouldn't call him weak or underestimate him. It's just that you're his opponent." I thought over my words. "Don't get cocky just because I said that."

"Of course not, Little Chiavarone. Care to elaborate on the ring battles?"

"Times the One Ring by seven and this whole ring battle is basically Lord of the Rings on steroids."

"Noted."

* * *

><p>I woke up and almost fell out of the chair I had fallen asleep in. Once I had somewhat scrambled into a better position, I pushed myself up and begin to stretch out my poorly mistreated, sore back. I froze when I noticed Basil was awake, and staring at me. I blinked and gave him an awkward smile.<p>

"Hi," I greeted. He gave me a small smile back. "How long was I out?" I asked him.

"I do not know, miss," He responded.

"Ah, sorry, I forgot to tell you who I am," I sat on the end of the bed and held out my hand to him. "I'm Cloud Chiavarone."

"Would you be Lord Dino's younger sister?" Basil asked, taking my hand and shaking it, albeit awkwardly. I nodded in confirmation.

"I am Basil," He introduced himself, dipping his head a little. "It is an honor meet thee, Lady Chiavarone." I waved my hand, dismissing his sophisticated tone.

"Just call me Cloud."

"Yes, Lady Cloud."

"...Close enough. By the way, how are you feeling? Are you're injuries better?" I asked slyly, wondering if Verde's invention worked.

"I am quite surprised, actually," Basil informed me. "They healed at a remarkable rate. Although, the wound on my chest still has yet to heal"

"Mmhm," I hummed. "Has anyone else been in here recently?"

"Lord Dino came in to check up on thee earlier and to see if I was awake. He said he would be back later." I hummed in conformation again.

"And you said that the wound on your chest was giving you problems, yeah?"

"Yes, Lady Cloud. It is the most troublesome wound."

"Would you mind showing it to me?"

"Not at all, Lady Cloud!" I scooted closer to him as he opened his shirt, revealing the bandages underneath.

"Okay, Basil, what I'm about to do you cannot tell anyone else about," I told him, putting my gloves back on. "And that is because the inventor of these gloves doesn't want this to get out yet since it's still is the testing phases. I healed your other wounds with these earlier and now I'd like to try again on your chest wound. You willing to give it a go?"

"If it means that I will be able to help Lord Sawada sooner, then I agree, Lady Cloud."

"Alright, then help me take off these bandages so I can get started before Dino comes back. I don't think I want him to know about this yet."

"But what will thou say when he notices my healed wounds?"

"... we'll just deal with that when we there, 'kay?"

"Yes, Lady Cloud."

After ten straight minutes of healing, I managed to almost completely heal the gash on Basil's chest (courtesy of Squalo's sword), leaving only a soft pink, still healing scar behind. One thing I found out during the process is that is actually hurts when healing the wound. Basil clung onto the bed sheets throughout the process and let out hisses of pain, but besides that, did not complain.

"That is truly amazing, Lady Cloud!" Basil complemented afterwards, breathing a little raggedly himself

"Thanks," I breathed out, wiping sweat off my brow. "You sure you're okay? It seemed to hurt you a bit." He shook his head.

"I am all right. Thank you for your concern. I can deal with a little pain if that means I will be able to aid Lord Sawada and my master sooner." I smiled in relief and plopped back into my chair again.

"Good to know," I muttered. "By the way, what time is it?"

"According to that clock on the wall, it is 5:32 in the morning." I groaned.

"Too early," I muttered, curling up in my chair again. "I'm going back to sleep."

"We're back, Basil." Dino burst through the door, flanked by Romario and Bono. "Ah, Cloud, you're awake."

"Goddammit, Dino," I growled under my breath. "Let me sleep some more," I whined.

"I guess you don' want food then," Dino teased, holding up a takeout bag.

"Correction; let me eat, then let me sleep." Dino laughed as Romario handed a one of the bags to Basil. My brother then approached me, handing me the bag of food, which I happily took.

"Yeah, you better save your energy now, Cloud. We have a full day of work ahead of us."

* * *

><p>I woke up about 2 and a half hours later with Basil sound asleep and the room empty. Feeling rather revitalized, I made my way to the entrance of the hospital to find Yamamoto and Gokudera.<p>

"Yo, Cloud! Long time no see, right?" Yamamoto immediately came over and slung his arm around me as a greeting. I smiled back up at him. Gokudera merely nodded in acknowledgement at me and went back to looking at the ring in his hand. I noticed Yamamoto held one in his hand as well.

"Pretty weird, right?" He said when he noticed my gaze. "I found it in my mailbox." Before we could dive further into the subject, Tsuna peeked into the hospital doors. Gokudera immediately brightened up like the puppy dog he is and Yamamoto moved closer to greet Tsuna. I stepped back and let them have their little conversation. When Dino and Reborn entered I moved to go stand by them.

"Why do Gokudera and Yamamoto both have...!?"

"Since they were chosen," Dino answered, revealing his presence to the trio.

"Dino and Cloud! Reborn too! Since when?" I ignored the fact the Tsuna was too oblivious to notice me at first, then continued listening to Reborn's explanation.

"There's a total of 7 Vongola Rings and they serve a purpose when 7 people of the family have it. The 6 rings other than yours were delivered to 6 other people who are worthy of protecting the next boss of the Vongola, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"That would be you, Tuna-fish," I generously informed him, giving him a slightly cheeky grin. He sent me a horrified expression in return.

"Yeah."

"That's the tradition of the Vongola. The Vongola Rings belong to the 7 core members of the family and are passed on as a proof of one belonging to the Vongola Family," Reborn continued explaining. "In every generation, the 7 core members of the family will have to take the 7 rings. That's the rule."

"And that makes it the proof of one being the successor!?" Tsuna whined pathetically. Gokudera, however, didn't seem phased by this in the least.

"1OTH! I FEEL EXTREMELY HONORED!" He bowed to Tsuna and sprung back up. "I can feel the tension now!" Tsuna seemed horrified by his friend's enthusiasm.

"Gokudera's is the 'Ring of Storm' and Yamamoto's is the 'Ring of Rain'," Reborn pointed out.

"What? Storm and rain... weather forecast?" Tsuna asked as the other two compared their rings.

"The members of the first Vongola were very unique and their characteristics are carved in the ring as well..." by this point in the conversation, I had gotten extremely bored. Therefore I motioned to Dino that I was heading back to Basil's room and with his nod of approval, I headed off.

"You feeling better?" I asked as I entered the room. He nodded enthusiastically from his position sitting on the side of the bed.

"Thank's to thou, I believe I am well enough to get up now, Lady Cloud." He pushed himself up to prove his point and walked over to me. "It seems I have recovered from my exhaustion as well."

"If that's the case, do you want to go down and greet Tsuna? I'm sure he's worried about you."

"Lord Sawada is here?" Basil's face brightened up immediately. I had to hold back a squeal because of his cuteness. Which reminded me of something.

"Hey, Basil, I've been meaning to ask you," I started as we made our way to the entrance. "Would you like to join my harem?"

"Of course, Lady Cloud. After all thou did heal me," he said with a smile. "But, if I may ask, what is a harem?" I waved him off.

"Don't worry; you don't have to know what it is to be in one," I informed him with a small wave of dismissal.

"MASTER PAOPAO!" Ah, I see we've entered on Ryohei's entrance. "IS IT TRUE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO TRAIN ME!?" Basil and I rounded the corner as Tsuna was freaking out. We stood back as Tsuna had his conversation with the extreme boxer. I tensed when I heard a familiar voice and Reborn's pacifier began to glow.

"Hey, it's been a while!"

"COLONELLO!" I almost went over to great him, but then I remembered Dino was here. I froze when Colonello saw me after kicking Tsuna's face in. I made a 'don't-say-anything' motion with my hand and gestured to Dino with my head, but the military baby didn't seem to get the hint.

"Basil!" Tsuna managed to notice Basil's presence in the room as Colonello approached me.

"Brat! Have you been keeping up with my training? I see you at least keeping up with the weights!" Dino stepped forward, confused by him familiarity with me while I was still vigorously shaking my head.

"I didn't know you two knew each other," Dino said, suspicion in his voice.

"I trained this brat recently. How long has it been, a couple weeks?" I face palmed.

"Mafia Island, huh..?" Dino gave me an accusing glare out of the corner of his eye as I shrank back. "We're going to have a talk later, sis."

"Anyway," Colonello turned back to Reborn and Ryohei. "Reborn came crying to me to tutor someone else."

"I didn't come crying," Reborn corrected. "We're short on time, so I can't train everybody, so instead they'll have personal home tutors." Tsuna was snapped out of his conversation with Basil with these words.

"Home tutors?!"

"So is this that boxer kid you were telling me about?" Colonello looked up at Ryohei with a neutral expression.

"THAT'S ME!" Colonello made a humming sound and began evaluating him with the snout of his gun in the same manner he evaluated me.

"Hey! Is he really that weak?"

"Yeah," Reborn answered. "Out of the 7 chosen members of the family, he's currently the weakest one." Shivers went down my spine as Colonello began to laugh.

"Hey, looks like you've found me an interesting one. If he can keep up with my training for the next 10 days, he can beat the six others. It's hellish training though. She can tell you that," he gestured to me. "Hey, you want to do it?" He offered a head band to the boxer.

"Of course I do! I won't lose!"

"Then come along!"

"All, right!" We watched them in all their extreme glory burst out the doors and off to train. I pouted a little.

"I didn't get a head band when we trained," I noted.

"You also didn't get permission." I paled at Dino's comment.

"Shouldn't you be going off to train yours?" I reminded him in a lame attempt to change the subject.

"Eh? Dino, you're tutoring someone too?" Tsuna turned to Dino, surprised.

"Yeah, since this case is a problem with alliance, me and Cloud can't fight along. This is the most we can do for you right now."

"We?" I asked as Tsuna freaked out.

"Yes, we," Dino forcefully swung his arm around me and pulled me closer. "You're helping since this kid is problematic. Plus, you're familiar with him as well."

"Gokudera and Yamamoto will find their own suitable home tutor," Reborn reassured Tsuna. "Dino and Cloud have Hibari handled, and as for you, Tsuna, I'll be training you with Basil's help."

"Are you sure you're well enough to help, Basil?" Tsuna asked, concern lighting up his eyes. Basil nodded happily.

"Yes, Lord Sawada, because of-" I quickly gave him my best 'remember-to-keep-it-a-secret' look, and unlike Colonello, he seemed to get the hint, so he corrected himself-" the amount of rest I had, I am ready to help anyway I can."

"Then we should get going," Dino began steering me towards the door. "To Namimori Middle!"

"Wait, you're training Hibari!? Are you sure you're going to be okay?"

"We'll be fine," Dino assured the frantic boy. "Besides, Cloud's dealt with the kid before."

"She has?"

"Numerous times," I elaborated.

"Good Luck, Tsuna!" Dino waved as we exited the door, Romario following behind faithfully. "Now, onto my little sister going off to train with one the most dangerous people in the world without telling me again," Dino began, squeezing my shoulder with a little too much affection. I laughed nervously in response.

"You love me, right?" I confirmed. He let out a long sigh.

"You've got to stop doing things like this, Cloud," He scolded me in a serious tone. I matched it with my own.

"I know, I know, but I also know that if I told you, you wouldn't let me go," I explained my reasoning.

"How do you know that? You couldn't be sure whether I would give you permission or not," He argued back.

"Would you have of let me go, then?"

"..." He huffed and shook his head. "I don't know, Cloud. Look, I just want you to be safe."

"And I just want to be stronger so I protect people I love, and I can't do that if you keep holding me back." We stopped at the school's entrance. Dino let me slide out from under his arm so that I was facing him.

"If you keep doing stuff like this, then how can I trust you?"

"Let's make a deal," I proposed. "I'll be truthful about most of what I do from now on and in return you'll actually let me do stuff. Within reason of course."

"...most?"

"Deal or no deal?" I asked, getting to the point. Dino ran a hand through his hair in exasperation.

"Fine," he extended his hand. "Deal." We shook on it, me with a proud smirk and him with a tired smile.

"Now let's go meet the monster of Namimori. Oh, and by the way, since I'm being truthful now, Basil is now official in my harem." And with that sentence, I ran into the middle school, heading straight for the reception room.

"Dammit, Cloud!"

* * *

><p>"Hey, Kyoya," I peeped my head in through the door of the reception room. Kyoya looked up at me his book, sitting casually on the couch and fiddling with his ring. His eyes widened slightly at my appearance.<p>

"Kumo," He acknowledged, putting down his book as he got up. "Have you come back to fight me?"

"Actually," I corrected him. "I brought somebody else for you to fight. Remember when I said I'd get someone strong to fight you?" His eyes narrowed as I stepped aside to let Dino walk in, with Romario trailing him as always.

"You must be Hibari Kyoya," my brother greeted. "I'm Cloud's big brother and also an acquaintance of Reborn. I want to talk to you about the ring with the cloud symbol on it."

"Kumo told me that you were strong," Kyoya said, a smirk forming on his face. "and that you would fight me. I don't care about the ring, as long as I can bite you dead."

"Told you he actually says that," I whispered to Dino.

"He's a problematic kid all right. That's fine," Dino reached done to retrieve his whip as Hibari bared his tonfas. "Things will go faster this way." I looked in between the two battle ready guys.

"Um," I stepped out in between them (which could be viewed as a very stupid move on my part), "as great as it is that you guys are ready to go at it and all, wouldn't it be better if we do this somewhere else? You know, so you guys don't damage the room," I gave Hibari a pointed look at the end of my explanation. We made eye contact and he snorted, straightening his posture and walking out of the room, pushing his way past Dino. Dino smirked and began to follow.

"Anything else I should know about him?" Dino asked me as we followed the prefect.

"Don't take a direct hit," I informed him.

"And...?" I shrugged.

"I don't know. Find out for yourself, Mr. Tutor." Dino rolled his eyes as we reached the roof door that Kyoya left open.

"Some help you are." I stuck my tongue out at him playfully and went over, jumping up so I was sitting on the fence; a good place to watch the fight. Kyoya turned sharply and faced Dino once more, prepped for battle.

"On the top of the school roof, how memorable. I like this place, you know?" Dino commented as they faced off.

"Then I'll let you stay here forever, after I make you grovel." And with that statement, Kyoya lunged at Dino, signaling the beginning of the fight. I was actually interested in watching it, until Iemitsu distracted me. I noticed him by the time Dino had caught Kyoya's tonfa with his whip (His orange construction outfit was quite noticeable after all). Then he started motioning me to come over. Not knowing it was me at first, I looked around in confusion, then pointed to myself. He nodded in confirmation and I approached him with a confused expression.

"…yes?"

"Come take a walk with me, Ms. Chiavarone," he said. "It looks like things are going just fine over there." I reluctantly walked with him as we made our way off the roof and back through the school.

"I was told not to take walks with strange men," I informed him. He laughed in response.

"Oh, come on! You know who I am. And besides, I need to ask you about a serious matter." His voice took a darker tone. "Now, I'm aware of your relationship with the Varia, and before you start worrying, I have no doubt that you're on Tsuna's side, which is why I'm approaching you with this. Out of all the Varia, the one most suitable to be the storm guardian is Prince the Ripper, Belphegor. I understand you know him very well."

"You could say that," I admitted with a small smirk, unable to hide it. "Where are you going with this?"

"Not only do I know he's suitable, but my sources also say that he was chosen to be the Varia's storm representative. Now, with you knowing him so well, and with Shamal's refusal to participate, I need to ask you something extremely important."

My mind went completely blank, his words throwing me for a loop.

"You understand that it's even more important for you to accept."

For a moment, I was actually in complete disbelief that this was happening.

"In a way, since you know his enemy the best, you're the perfect candidate for this."

It made perfect logical, sense and yet, that disbelief was still there.

"Cloud Chiavarone, I need you to tutor Tsuna's storm guardian, Gokudera Hayato in order to him to beat Belphegor."

"Huh?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Oh no, a cliff hanger! Gasp! Well, kind of a cliff hanger. Like I said, this is where things really start changing.**

**So, I'm kind of taking a chakra like approach for the flames, so at first, with Cloud's low flame capacity and intensity, it's going to be hard for her to heal and stuff, but with practice, it will be much easier for her to do stuff. Yeah.**

**So, tell me what you think and stuff, like always, and if the 'plot twist' surprised you (because it surprised me when I first thought of it). Oh, and aren't you guys proud of me? I updated twice in one week. Wooooh!**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question:**

**Favorite Manga?**

Mine would be One Piece and KHR, no doubt. One Piece is a childhood thing and KHR is the only thing I know that was good enough for me to actually read the entire series without having followed it from the start. And the characters in both are kick-ass. Plus, in both (but majorly in KHR), I love how much the art improves over time, I mean for eXAMPLE TSUNA GOT HOT.

**-Klu**


	26. An Act of Betrayal

**Chapter 26: An Act of Betrayal **

**I don't own KHR, The Hobbit, or the somewhat quote I included from The Prestige. **

**NOTICE: the sections italicized are memories from Cloud's earlier years. They are placed about when she comes back from her first two years in China**

* * *

><p><strong>"She saw this now, and it was like looking ahead to the very sad ending of a novel, then quickly shutting the book, as if that could keep it from happening."<strong>

**-Meg Wolitzer**

* * *

><p>"Huh?"<p>

"I said I needed you to tutor Gokudera," Iemitsu repeated.

"Well, yeah, I know that, I'm just still... processing it." He laughed and gave me a few pats on the head before walking away.

"Find him in the forest when you're ready to start. Just head for the sounds of bombs," He informed me as he left. I stared after him as he disappeared.

"That _hùndàn _didn't even give me a choice," I uttered in complete disbelief. I sighed and rubbed my temples. " _Cào_. _Cào_! What the _cào _am I going to do? I guess it wouldn't really be a complete betrayal of friendship... yeah. I'll just keep telling myself that."

And with that shaky confirmation, I set off to get ready to train my newly acquired pupil.

* * *

><p>"<em>W<em>_ǒ__ c__à__o_, this guy is on a different level of crazy," I noted as I drew closer to the explosions in the middle of the forest. I successfully managed not to face palm when I got where I could see Gokudera, already beat up from attempting to 'train' himself. My eyes narrowed as I saw him begin to sway. "Shit," I cursed in my native language (for once) and quickly moved my rifle off my shoulder, really hoping that rain flames could pacify bombs. For once in my life, luck seemed to be on my side and it turned out that my rain flames could nullify bombs. I let out a relieved sigh and began making my way over to my new student, re-positioning the heavy duffel bag on my shoulder. I knelt down and poked him in the face as he lay on the ground, not responding.

"Yo, Gokudera?" I asked him. "You dead or what?"

"What the hell do you want, woman?"

"Ah, I see you're still among the living. Joy."

"Gokudera, you're okay!"

"Tenth!" Gokudera immediately tried to push himself up as his future boss came running towards us, along with another uninvited guest.

"Long time no see my de-" I quickly flipped out my gun and pressed against Shamal's forehead as he pranced towards me. He froze in is tracks as soon as the tip touched his skin.

"Take one step closer and you're dead," I politely informed him. He put his arms up and wisely stepped back.

"Of course, it would be rather stupid to attack a pretty lady who has so many dangerous weapons within her reach," Shamal said with a nervous laugh, gesturing to my duffel bag on my shoulder. With a satisfied smirk, I turned back to Tsuna and Gokudera.

"Cloud! What are you doing here? I thought you were helping Dino train Hibari," Tsuna said.

"Well things don't always go according to plan," I said heavily, still trying not to think about my situation. "And as for you," I turned on Gokudera, who met me with a glare. "You really have to look after yourself. How can you expect to get strong if you die trying? How can you protect your beloved tenth if you can't even protect yourself?" I scolded him. He clicked his tongue at me, but I caught the thoughtful, guilty look in his eyes.

"Why the hell are you telling me this, woman?"

"Because," I crouched down to look him in the eyes. "I'm your tutor, genius." And with that statement, I flicked him in the forehead and stood up.

"What?" Naturally, Tsuna freaked out. "Why are you tutoring Gokudera? I thought you were helping Dino?"

"I told you, Tuna-fish, things change, your dad kind of forced me into it, and I know Gokudera's opponent."

"My dad..?"

"You know who I'm fighting?"

"Yep," I said, popping the 'p'. "And let me start off by saying that the way you are now, you will defiantly lose and most likely be killed by him," I said in all seriousness. "But, you're lucky because you have me." I pointed to myself.

"And what can you do to help me?" Gokudera asked with suspicious lingering in his voice.

"I know how he thinks," I explained, pointing to my head. "His moves, his battle tactics, his thought process and all that jazz. When we're done, you should at least be able to hold your own against him, but still don't expect to win," I warned him.

"T-that sounds kind of scary, Cloud," Tsuna commented. "He must be a terrifying guy. And you said you know him?"

"Friends with him actually," I corrected. "I believe we even consider ourselves 'best friends' although, he's set on me being his fiancée." They all stared at me in disbelief.

"You're not normal, Cloud," Tsuna informed me.

"Aware," I noted. Shamal nodded in approval.

"Since you know the guy, then I guess there's nothing more I can do here," he said and began walking away. "You seem to have things covered, Chiavarone."

"Thanks, pervy doc," I saluted him.

"Wait!" Gokudera yelled after him "What about that technique?" Shamal waved him off without even looking back.

"You're a smart kid," he admitted. "You can figure it out. Besides, you have a tutor to help you know." And with that, he was gone.

"Listen, Smoking Bomb," I said, calling their attention to me. "Go home and rest; take care of your wounds and come back first thing tomorrow to this same spot. Oh, and make sure you're prepared," I added, as I began walking off too.

"Prepared for what?" He asked.

"For hell," I answered with a sly smirk.

* * *

><p>"Ah, good. You came," I jumped down from the tree I was reading my book in as Gokudera entered the clearing. "Good thing you took the same path to get here," I noted with a smile. "Otherwise you would have experienced my method of training early."<p>

"What exactly did you mean by 'be prepared for hell'?" He asked, still a little miffed.

"Well, considering I've been personally trained by two Acrobaleno, and have witnessed Reborn's methods growing up, it's only natural that my own training methods would be brutal as well." Gokudera's eyes widened in surprise.

"You've been trained by two Acrobeleno?"

"Colonello and Fon, who despite seeming nice and laid back has surprising hellish training methods," I replied, almost shuddering at the memories. "Colonello is just spartan by default," I added as an afterthought.

"Now, onto training," I clapped my hands together. "So first, let's get our objectives out of the way," I started, sitting down on the ground and gesturing for him to do the same. He gave me a weird look, but still complied. "Let me start off by saying that your opponent is a master tactician. So, throughout this training, you're going to be working on observing; picking out things that aren't right and finding solutions to problem. If you simplify every problem to one single thing, and fix that thing, then everything else will collapse with it- what are you doing?" I gave him an incredulous look as he frantically scribbled down notes in a notebook he had pulled out of nowhere.

"I'm making notes, you stupid woman!" He growled at me. "I need to learn more about this in order to help Tenth."

"Not that way you're not," I chided, leaning back on one of my arms. "What I'm going to teach you is instinctual. By the time we're done, you're going to be looking for these things without even thinking about it. And this is all because your life is going to be on the line, and in that situation, petty notes aren't going to help you in a life-and-death battle." I sighed in defeat and pushed myself up when I got only a blank stare in response.

"Okay then, maybe we should move onto the physical part of training." I dug in my pocket and held up a small bell. Gokudera eyed it, unimpressed. "Taking a Naruto approach to things, your task is to take the bell away from me." He scoffed.

"That's it?" He got up and dusted himself off with a smug look on his face. "Then this will be simple."

"I wouldn't underestimate me if I were you," I warned him. "And remember not to hold back. If you're not careful, you could die during this. Remember what I said about valuing your own life." A confused look crossed his face.

"What do you mean I co-"

"Start." And with that, I quickly headed into the forest. I vaguely heard Gokudera let out a curse before clumsily following after me. I climbed nearby tree and hid in the branches, waiting for him to come by. Soon enough, he came lumbering through the trees in a head-on sprint. I actually winced when he tripped the first wire, sending a barrage of needles down on him. His eyes widened and he moved to dodge, but despite his attempts, some of the needles got his arm. As he rolled over, I reached into my pocket, bringing out two knives. Jumping down from the tree, I landed in a crouch, then threw the weapons at Gokudera, who was still recovering from the needle barrage. He still moved, but one knife sliced his shoulder and the other his cheek. I shook my head and sighed.

"The hell was that, woman?!"

"I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed," I admitted. "I half expected you to handle the needles better since you recently faced an opponent who uses those kind of weapons. And you completely fell for the trap, even though I made sure the wire was visible. You weren't in it at all, were you?"

"We just started, just give me another chance." I ignored his complaint and brought out another knife, twirling it in my hands.

"Your opponent uses knives as his main weapon. Compared to him, I'm an amateur, so in this time, I'm going to get you used to dodging knives, among other things. Also keep in mind to look for traps and wires. Especially wires. They're going to become less and less visible as we go."

"How do you even know I'm going to face this guy?" Gokudera pointed out. "They haven't even come yet!"

"Well, it's logical, isn't it? Either way, Iemitsu is certain that this guy is the Storm Guardian for the Varia, so it's natural that you guys would face off for the ring, right?" There was also the fact that I had knowledge of the future, but I left that part out.

"I guess..."

"Then I'll prep you for the battle. Now, that you know what you're doing, you should adapt better, so I won't go easy on you," I held up the bell again. "So, let's start again, shall we?" A determined look washed over his face.

"Then I won't hold back either, woman!" he said, throwing his dynamite at me. I jumped back, avoiding the blow, smirking.

"I was hoping you would say that."

* * *

><p>"God, this is so painful," Tsuna complained as Basil, Reborn and he walked back from training.<p>

"Tsuna, watch out for that wire," Reborn warned his student.

"What are you talking about, Reborn? There's n- GAH!" Tsuna tripped and almost landed face first on the ground. Basil managed to catch the future don just in time and pull him out of the way before the knives came flying at them. "WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!"

"Oh, sorry Tuna-fish!" There was the small jingling of a bell and the group looked over to see Cloud jumping down from a tree. "It's part of Gokudera's training."

"What type of training are you putting him through?" Tsuna asked, trying to imagine what type of training would involve death traps.

"It's kind of a survival training really," she explained, crossing her arms. "We're working on his observing abilities and looking for traps."

"Has Lord Gokudera been successful so far?" Basil asked. There was a yelp off in the distance.

"It doesn't look like it," Reborn noted dryly. "Did Colonello teach you how to set traps?" Cloud nodded in response.

"It was part of his 'I'll-make-a-soldier-out-of-you' training," She elaborated. "But right now, I made them pretty obvious. As we go I'll make them less and less noticeable until he's good enough to pick out wires easily."

"Why such focus on traps and wires?"

"Because we know who his opponent's going to be," She said with a sly smile.

"Oh? How interesting," Reborn allowed a smirk in return. "I approve your sly way of tutoring, Cloud."

"Thanks. I grew up watching one of the best, so it's natural that it would reflect on me." Tsuna looked in between the two tutors and shivered out of fear.

"I'm pretty sure they just shared a secret message or something. Come on Basil, let's get out of here before we get caught up in whatever she's up to," He whispered to his new friend and started heading back to his house.

"Of course, Lord Sawada." Reborn nodded a goodbye and followed his student. Cloud waved at them as they left, then side stepped Gokudera, who had tried to pounce at her.

"I would say nice try, but that would be lying," she chided to her fallen student. He grumbled and pushed himself up.

"How do you expect me to have enough energy to get the bell while dealing with all these traps?"

"That's the point, genius. This training is basically a survival test. It forces you to save your energy and move while injured. It's efficient because it forces you to cope within a small amount of time, since we don't have much of that to begin with. Start acting serious about this," she said with a rather cold look in her eyes. "You can dodge half of those traps you triggered if you were really trying. You should be able to go into that 'life-or-death' mode anytime. If I can do it, then I have no doubt that you can."

"You can do that?"

"How the _cào_ did you think I survived training from two acrobalenos? So far, I've pretty much left you alone, just dealing with the traps. But now I'm going to be after you with knives. If you're serious enough, you should be fine. You ready?" Gokudera looked up at his tutor with a thoughtful face. Then, determination lit up in his eyes.

"I'll do this! I'll do this for the tenth!"

* * *

><p><em>"Ushishis, you're doing wrong, princess." I huffed and turned around to face Bel.<em>

_"Oh, I'm sorry if it's my first time throwing knives Mr. Knife thrower. Why don't you show me how to do it since you keep telling me I'm doing it wrong?" He snickered once more then pushed himself up from the wall he was leaning on._

_"First of all, you're holding it wrong," he pointed out. He grabbed my hand and placed my fingers in the correct position. "Now you have a better grip and can put more into the throw." He then looked down and nudged my feet with his own until they were standing in a sturdier position. He then walked behind me and guided my arm back "You were throwing wrong too," he explained. "You can't force it, you have to let it flow." He moved his arm with mine as we threw the knife together. He stepped back and let me try one on my own. "Ushishi, better princess," he allowed. "Just keep practicing." He yawned and retreated back to leaning against the wall._

_"Is that how you throw your knives?" I asked after a few more throws._

_"No. The prince uses his own unique way, since my knives are unique. This is just the standard way of throwing knives," he explained._

_"Ah, I see," I said idly, twirling the knife and turning to him. "Anything you want to learn from me? You know, since you're teaching me how to throw knives and all?" He hummed thoughtfully, placing a hand on his chin. He then let loose his signature Cheshire cat grin._

_"Teach me one of those cool looking moves you learned in China," he commanded. I frowned._

_"Bel, you have to be trained properly before you can do any of the advanced moves. You have to have the right muscles and stuff." He snorted._

_"Does the princess doubt the prince's skills?" I sighed in defeat, knowing that he was going to make me teach him no matter what. I began wondering if I could get away with teaching him one of the simple moves... probably not, with how smart he is._

_"Whatever you say, your highness."_

* * *

><p>Gokudera's eyes widened in surprise as a cut appeared on his arm after he dodged the knife. He immediately retreated back, dodging three more knives I had thrown at him, only to receive more cuts after the knives had passed.<p>

"Have you ever heard the three acts of a magic trick?" I asked him from my position opposite of him. He stood still, eyes evaluating the situation carefully. "The first two acts can be applied to this, you know. First," I began, holding a knife up, "You show the audience something ordinary, something normal. Looks normal enough, right? It probably isn't though," I hinted and threw the knife at my student. He dodged easily enough, but remained still after his move, having learned from his past experiences. "Then, you take that ordinary thing and turn it into something extraordinary." I threw a knife, forcing Gokudera to dodge right, causing another cut on his arm. "And now, you're trying to figure the trick out," I concluded. "Should be easy enough for you, yeah?" I threw three more knives, and with each knife a new ghost cut appeared on Gokudera. His eyes narrowed as he froze, waiting for the next throw. I smirked and threw it straight at his face. He brought one of his bombs up, and the knife embedded itself into it.

"Razor wires," He said, pulling on the bomb, tugging the wire that was attached to it. "The knives are connected to wires that cut me after they were thrown. You threw other knives to drive me towards the wires."

"Congrats, you've figured it out. But, that doesn't mean anything if you can't defend against it. And," I reminded him, leaning forward and holding out the bell, "you haven't even come close to getting the bell yet." He frowned and crouched down, preparing his bombs to attack me. I sighed and scratched my head.

"Maybe I shouldn't goad the kid who's armed with highly dangerous explosives," I murmured.

* * *

><p><em>I covered my mouth, trying to hold back my laughter. Bel turned his head toward me, and I could feel the intensity of his glare. He made a little 'kaching' sound as I burst out laughing, unable to keep it in.<em>

_"Stop laughing," he growled, pushing himself up._

_"Sorry! Sorry!" I panted. "I've just never seen you full out fall on your ass like that! I told you, you have to be trained to do that kind of stuff," I reminded him. He huffed. For a while, nobody moved. Then he lunged at me, an attempt to tackle. I bridged back, dodging him. He whipped around and grabbed my leg. I responded and twisted around so that I could push him away from me. I managed to break his hold, but he tripped me with his foot, sending me down. I scrambled to get up, but he sat down on my stomach and smiled down at me._

_"You may be more flexible, but I have weight and height on my side," He teased._

_"Let," I hissed,"me up." He hummed thoughtfully._

_"Apologize for laughing at royalty and I might," He considered with a snicker._

_"Fine. I'm sorry I laughed at you because you fell on your ass ever so ungracefully. Happy now?"_

_"Quite. But I'm not letting you up, princess." I huffed._

_"You're just mad that the all mighty Prince the Ripper can't do one little thing," I pointed out. He snorted and looked away. I huffed and wiggled around, but he was right; his weight stopped me from moving much. "Asshole," I muttered._

_"Bitch," He replied causally. I decided to switch tactics._

_"Let me up, hubby dear?"_

_"Nope."_

_"Hate you."_

_"Aware~"_

* * *

><p>"So, have you worked on Shamal's technique any?" I asked Gokudera as he avoided one of the more advanced traps.<p>

"I have theoretical notes on it..." He stopped and looked at me warily. I paused in the midst of my knife throwing.

"What?"

"Well, I thought you disapproved of my 'scientific' way to approach things," He stated, dropping his weapons and walking closer to me.

"Well, for this way of learning, yeah," I explained, pocketing my weapons as well, "but for that kind of thing, it takes more of an engineering mind to figure it out. You should start experimenting with those theories so that they're ready in time." I flipped back as he lunged for the bell tied to my belt. "Nice try at using the conversation to distract me so you can get close, but I'm pretty sure you won't be able to get a hold of me," I informed him with a cheeky smile. He huffed in annoyance and threw a couple bombs at me. I cursed and jumped back.

One good thing that came from tutoring Gokudera was that it gave me more chances to use my flames in different ways. One prime example I have been working on it using my sun flames for speed and enhancing. I seriously think that without them, I wouldn't be able to get away from half the bombs he was throwing my way. Another thing I'm getting better at is healing small injuries on me as we go. I've pretty much taken to wearing the gloves 24/7 now.

"You shouldn't push yourself too hard," I warned him after I noticed how hard he was breathing and how many scratches and bruises he had because of how much had been running around chasing me today.

"I have to do this for the tenth," he panted, "even if it kills me. I would die for the tenth!" I frowned and shook my head with a heavy sigh.

"If you really think that, then you really don't know Tsuna, do you?" He looked up at me with a confused look.

"What the hell are you talking about, woman?"

"Maybe some bosses are willing to have their subordinates die for them, and that might the typical boss, but not Tsuna. He wouldn't want anybody dying for his sake, especially his friends," I scolded Gokudera. "If you think Tsuna wants you to die for him, then you're an idiot," I bluntly informed him. His face grew red and he turned away. I huffed in exasperation and turned away as well. I rubbed the back of my head and sighed.

"What a troublesome student..."

* * *

><p>"Dammit!" Gokudera's hand brushed the bell as he flew past me. I delivered a swift kick to the back of his neck and he hit the ground with a loud thump.<p>

"That's five times now," I informed him, crouching down and leaning my folded arms on my knees. "You're getting better. You're beginning to read my movements now." He roughly pushed himself up, but faltered only to fall back down again. His hands curled into fist and he rolled himself over to where he was glaring up at the sky. I sighed and got up, moving to where I was standing over him.

"Hey, Smoking Bomb," I addressed him. "I'm putting the bell away so I can patch you up. We're done for today. You've definitely improved and we've been going for about a week, every day. After I get done, go home and get some rest." He shot me a halfhearted glare, but still let me tend to his wounds. "Don't be such a brat," I scolded when I was done, after the long, partly tense silence had passed.

"I'm not a brat!" he shot at me. I sighed and pushed myself up.

"You're pouting," I pointed an accusing finger at him. "Like a brat. You're only 'losing' because I'm good at avoiding. If this were a real fight then I'm pretty sure this would end differently. Don't be too hard on yourself, and maybe you won't act so much like a brat." I held out a hand to him. He stared at it for a bit, then took it. I pulled him up and we began walking back.

"Why'd you agree to train me anyway?" Gokudera asked as he numbly lit a cigarette and put it in his mouth. "We never really interacted much before this. You're closer to the tenth and that baseball freak than you are with me. Hell, you spent more time around that demon prefect than with me." I shrugged and crossed my arms.

"Tsuna's family, so you're family. Can't it be that simple?" He snorted at my response. "Besides," I continued. "I know the lesson you need to be taught, so why not?" I decided to not mention the fact that I was kind of sort of forced into this position.

"And what lesson it that, woman?"

"To protect the family."

"I already know that!" He snapped at me. "I'll protect the tenth with my life."

"When I say family, that includes you," I elaborated, ignoring his outburst. "Protect the family, protect yourself." He eyed me warily, then looked away with a thoughtful look.

"You keep telling me that," He mumbled after a while. "Like you know something's going to happen."

"Something's always going to happen," I said with a sad sigh. "That's just our life." He turned back to me and met me with a thoughtful almost nostalgic look.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." he took another drag of his cigarette. "But," A small smile slipped onto his face. "sometimes that something is a good something." I looked at him and blinked. He noticed my gaze.

"What the hell is that look for, woman?!" He snapped at me, a small blush creeping on his face. I gave him a cheeky smile.

"I just didn't expect to get something so deep from you, Mr. Scientific," I chirped, making his face turn even redder.

"S-shut up!"

* * *

><p>I let out an impressed whistle when I stepped out of the door and onto the roof after I had parted ways with Gokudera.<p>

"They're really going at it, aren't they?" I asked Romario as I neared him and Tetsu standing off to the side, avoiding the insane fighting.

"Ah, Kuma-san," Tetsu greeted me. "Apparently they made a deal."

"If boss wins then the kid has to actually listen to him," Romario explained.

"As opposed to simply attacking out of blood lust and irritation," I noted, getting the gist. "I just came by to check up on them. You know, to make sure they haven't killed each other yet."

"That's right," Romario recalled scratching his chin. "You haven' been around. What have you been up to, princess?"

"Tutoring a student of my own," I answered, leaning on the fence. "Smoking Bomb." Romario's eyes widened slightly, then he smiled.

"And how's that going?"

"He's a bit hot-headed," I admitted, "but, he's making progress. Although, I've been putting him through hellish training."

"From the kind of training you've been through, I wouldn't doubt it," Romario admitted. I rolled my eyes at his amusement.

"Yo, Cloud!" Dino seemed to notice me at this point. "Where've you been?" He dodged another one of Kyoya's attacks. "Hey, Kyoya, let's take a break for a bit, yeah?" He gave the prefect a hopeful look. Kyoya's glare simply intensified.

"I refuse," He stated, and lunged at Dino again.

"Oh, come on, Kyoya!" Dino whined. "Just let me talk to my little sister!" Kyoya snorted in irritation.

"It'll just be for a little bit, Kyoya," I said, trying to help Dino's case. "Five minutes max, then you can get back to beating each other up." Kyoya gave me a pointed look, then huffed and put his tonfas down.

"Fine." He turned to glare at Dino. "You have five minutes." Dino sighed in relief and placed his hands on his knees, breathing ragged breaths. As I drew closer, I noticed Kyoya was breathing heavily as well.

"You call this training?" I teased my brother.

"It's the only thing he responds to," Dino admitted. "And where have you been? I thought you were going to help me with this!"

"Well, stuff happens," I explained. "And by stuff, I mean that I became of tutor as well."

"You're tutoring someone? Who is it?"

"Gokudera," I replied. "And it's surprisingly going well."

"That's good for you," he admitted in a tired voice. "I'm not getting far with this one. What's the training like?"

"Hellish," I admitted with a sly grin. "What do expect? I've been trained by a martial arts genius and the most Spartan baby that can be labeled Spartan."

"That's true," my brother admitted. "But I'm still disappointed that you can't help me," his mood instantly dropped. "This kid is a monster. I was going to rely on you to calm him down because you know him." I sympathetically patted his shoulder.

"I'll help after I get done teaching Gokudera, bro," I assured him. He sent me a questioning stare.

"You sure? I mean, I don't want t- Gah!" He ducked as a tonfa soared over his head and clanged into the fence behind us. We looked over to see Kyoya stalking towards us, his other tonfa in hand.

"Time's up," He stated simply. Dino threw his hands up as the prefect neared.

"Come on, Kyoya," Dino said, backing up and reaching back to grab his whip on his belt. "We're still talking!"

"He's right, Dino," I said as Kyoya stalked past me. "We had a deal." I shrugged as Dino gave me a look filled with betrayal.

"Not you too, Cloud!"

"I'll bite you to death!" Kyoya said as he lunged at my brother. Dino sighed and rolled out of the way.

"You're not helping, Cloud!"

"Wasn't my intention, Dino."

* * *

><p>I quickly dove behind a bush on my way back to the hotel, out of sight, watching as a figure in a familiar uniform jumped over me and onto another roof. I waited a bit until I was sure the Varia underling was gone, silently thanking Fon and Colonello for their training. I seriously did not want to become even more involved at this point.<p>

"So it's already starting," I quietly mumbled to myself as I started walking again. "I didn't think it would be so soon," I sighed and rubbed the back of my head. "Whatever." I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts.

"Something's going to happen anyway. Might as well go with it, for now."

* * *

><p>I'm usually not surprised by stuff. It might have something to do with the fact that I know a somewhat outline of the future, but just in everyday life I'm pretty chill about most everything. I was, however, surprised by a knock on the window of my hotel room. I blinked and put my book down, glancing around the room. Then they knocked again. Grabbing my gun off the nightstand, I walked over to the window and pulled the curtain back carefully. The grinning face of Bel was staring back at me through the glass. My eye twitched as he knocked again. I sighed and opened the window.<p>

"Yo, princess~" He greeted as he jumped into the room. "Long time no see, right?" He ruffled my hair.

"What," I crossed my arms and glared at him, not reacting to his friendly gestures, "are you doing here?"

"Visiting you, or course," He replied as he plopped down on the bed. "Am I not allowed to visit my fiancée?"

"Not when we're on opposing sides," I snapped at him half-heartedly, as I sat down beside him. "I have enough angst as it is." He snickered.

"I see~ You feel guilty for going against us. It's fine, we're going to win either way," he commented confidently. "It's not like you'll be affected negatively anyway. Boss doesn't hate you or anything."

"It's still confusing," I admitted. I looked down at the ring on his finger. "That the Storm Ring?"

"Half of it," he said, holding it up for me to see. "I'll get the other half soon enough, ushishi!"

"I don't know. I wouldn't underestimate them," I noted, not being able to hold back to defend my student. Bel stared at me for a bit, then leaned close to my face with a wide grin. I leaned back as he neared.

"You're hiding something, princess~" He sang. "And the prince wants to know what it is." I squirmed underneath his gaze.

"I may or may not kind of be tutoring your opponent," I admitted after a while. He froze, then burst out laughing, falling back on the bed.

"Ushishisi! That's great! This makes things even more interesting!" He laughed, holding his stomach. After a while, he seemed to gain control over himself. "I can't wait now." I raised an eyebrow.

"You're not mad?" He snorted.

"Why would I be? It's not like you're the one I'm fighting," He admitted, putting his hands behind his head. Feeling relieved somewhat, I plopped down onto the bed, lying beside him.

"Well that's a relief," I sighed. "I've been worrying about that ever since I started." He snickered.

"That's a stupid thing to be worrying about, princess." I huffed and grabbed a pillow, bringing it down of his face. He caught it, and threw it back at me with a wide grin. I gave him an irritated look back as I caught it, now sitting back up. He pointed at the weights on my wrists and ankles.

"You've been training," he pointed out, "and you have weights. You have some around your waist too, right?"

"You would be the one to notice," I said with grin.

"Ushishi, of course. I know you the best after all."

"And I know you the best. What was that earlier about not wanting to fight me?" I teased him. He huffed and moved to where he was sitting on the edge of the bed.

"If I kill you, then who would I drag around and wreak havoc with?" He asked with a grin.

"Mammon?" I supplied.

"Nah," He waved the suggestion off. "The only thing fun about him is his puffy cheeks." I laughed at his statement, then remembered the current situation. I puffed out my cheeks.

"Stop making me laugh. You're the enemy of my student," I accused him. He chuckled and moved towards the window again, opening it and stepping out on the ledge. I followed him and leaned on the ledge, looking up at him.

"I guess I better get back before the commander gets pissed. You coming to the fight tomorrow?" He asked before he left. I shrugged.

"I might," I allowed. He snorted in amusement.

"See ya around princess~" He waved before he left. I leaned further out the window and watched him go, letting out a long sigh and leaning my head on my crossed arms.

"Why do I have such a weird and dangerous best friend?"

* * *

><p>"What do you mean we're not going to train anymore?!" Gokudera asked me as we walked towards Namichuu.<p>

"I've done all that I can. The battles are starting tonight, so you should heal as much as possible. It would be hindering for you to already be hurt before your battle. Heal as much as you can before you fight so that you're fully charged," I explained. "You've already improved so much, and you can pick out traps and strategies easily now. But, don't think that means you can win with ease. Remember what I told you about valuing your own life and be sure to perfect your new technique before your battle. You're almost there anyway, from what you've used on me."

"But I never got the bell!"

"So?" I shrugged. "Does that really matter now?"

"Of course it matters! It means I didn't pass your training," he argued back.

"It doesn't matter if you pass or not. You still grew because of it. And if you think about it, the bell is a whole other lesson," I hinted with a sly smile. Gokudera grumbled, crossed his arms and looked away pointedly.

"Cloud, Gokudera!" We looked up to see Tsuna and Yamamoto. As we approached, I noticed Tsuna take in Gokudera's bandages and sour mood before it changed. I waved to the two before I stepped past them.

"I'll let you guys have you're little family chat," I explained as I began walking past them. "I'm going on to check on Kyoya and Dino." I paused as I noticed the look on Tsuna's face. I smiled at him and ruffled his hair. "You'll be fine, Tsuna. You and your family."

"How do you know that, Cloud?" he asked me quietly, so his two friends could hear. I shrugged and turned away.

"Because I believe in you, bro. And I know these things."

* * *

><p><em>"Zhēn tā mā de<em>," I breathed as I saw the condition Dino and Kyoya were in. "They went all out, didn't they?" I addressed a grimacing Romario. He nodded

"They need to stop soon," he admitted. "But that kid hasn't let up yet. I'm surprised he's lasted this long."

"Well, he's about to go now," I pointed out as Kyoya wavered. "You take care of Dino, I'll get him." I ran off to catch Kyoya before Romario could argue. I managed to get the prefect before he hit the ground. I wordlessly slung his arm over my shoulder and walked (more like dragged, but whatever) him to the other side of the roof, away from where Romario would be patching up Dino. I decided it would be wise to keep them apart while I was treating Kyoya, so that I could keep him somewhat calmed without the distraction of his tutor. I noticed Dino walking towards Romario on his own as I set Kyoya down.

"I don't need your help, Kumo." I looked back, meeting the prefect's intense glare. I sighed and tried to grab his arm. He pulled it away.

"Look," I stated calmly, "I'm just patching you up. You've been going at it for about, what? About a week now?" He didn't answer. "If you let me patch you up, then you can go back to fighting Dino faster. Right now, as much as you hate to hear it, you can barely stand." I rolled my eyes when he remained silent.

"Really," I tried. "You've got the better end of the deal. I'm much better at tending to wounds like these than Romario. Therefore, you have the better medic than Dino." I gave him a halfhearted smile. My eyes narrowed as I noticed him roll his eyes. "Did you just roll your eyes at me?" He huffed and thrust out his arm, almost startling me.

"If I let you tend to my wounds, then you have to fight me," He demanded. I hummed thoughtfully.

"Fine. But this goes for every time you need tended to. I'm not going to fight you every time I need to heal you," I bargained. I took his lack of response as a yes, and began surveying his wounds. Luckily, there wasn't any major ones, but the amount of them was the thing that ended up getting him. While I worked, I kept the fact that I had to fight this maniac suppressed so I wouldn't have to think about it. Once I had covered his arm and the few leg wounds I looked at his chest. I gave him an awkward smile. He narrowed his eyes at me.

"What?"

"...I'm going to have to ask you a slightly awkward question." He raised an eyebrow in question. "Can you," I started, "unbutton your shirt so I can get that one bad wound on your chest?" A moment passed. Then he snorted and began unbuttoning his shirt. I blinked, not thinking he would be so complying.

"Who usually takes care of your wounds?" I asked once he was done and I could start again.

"I do," was his short reply. I figured as much, knowing his pride and all. I pushed myself up, and began walking to the other side. I looked back at the prefect, who was still leaning against the wall I had propped him up against.

"I would _suggest_ staying put for a while," I told him, careful not to boss him around. "I'm going to talk to Dino." He nodded his head in acknowledgement, then leaned back, looking up at the clouds. I found Dino on the other side in better shape than the prefect.

"Yo," he greeted me as Romario put a band aid on his cheek. "Should I be worried about you two?" He asked, his eyes narrowing slightly. I rolled my eyes and slid down beside him.

"So, since the battles are going to be here, and we both know that won't bide well with that one," I pointed at Kyoya, "where are you guys going to train?"

"I was thinking up north," Dino explained. "Really, just anywhere away from here will be good. If he discovers the battles..." Dino trailed off with a pale look on his face.

"Well, luckily for you," I pointed to myself. "I can now help you with this daunting task of distracting Kyoya. I've done it before, after all."

"What about your student?"

"I've done all I can do for him. Besides, he needs to rest and heal before his battle. Not everybody is as insane as your dear student."

"I guess I could use the help," Dino admitted, scratching the back of his head.

"I'm done resting now." We both blinked and looked up to see Kyoya standing before us. "We can start fighting again." Dino let out a nervous chuckle as I looked up at the prefect in amazement. This guy was a monster.

"Now, now, Kyoya, don't be in such a hurry," Dino tried. "Besides, we're moving settings." Kyoya's eyes narrowed. "You know," Dino continued, obviously thinking off the top of his head. "So you can get used to fighting in different surroundings. Yeah! We'll be travelling up north soon, while we're breaking now, you should go get ready." The glare didn't lesson and Dino gulped.

"I'm done resting now," Kyoya repeated, raising his tonfas. "So I'm ready to fight again." There was a pause before Dino pushed himself up and began running down the stairs. Kyoya followed him, naturally.

"Romario, get things ready for the journey!" Dino yelled before he disappeared from sight. Romario sighed and turned away to make the calls he needed to make. I began walking down the stairs, wincing when I heard a yelp from Dino and a series of crashing.

"He's such an idiot," I muttered as I picked up my pace, hoping that Kyoya wouldn't murder my brother in his weakened, clumsy, subordinate-less state. I rounded the corner of the hallway to find Kyoya glaring down at a badly beaten, unconscious but thankfully not dead, Dino. I let out a heavy sigh and slowed my pace as I approached them. Kyoya looked towards me with an irritated, almost pouty, and confused look on his face.

"He's weak now," He noted, giving Dino another kick, getting a wince out of me. "Explain."

"When his men aren't around he gets really clumsy and weak," I said, deciding it wouldn't hurt if he knew. Kyoya frowned and looked back down at Dino.

"He's no fun like this," the prefect admitted.

"While he's like this, you could go get ready for the trip," I suggested. "He'll be more fun when he's healed and around Romario." For a moment, Kyoya seemed to consider this.

"Or, I could just fight you."

"Or you could not?" I tried. He smirked and stepped towards me, tonfas bared. I held up my arms in defense. "Look, I'll fight you when we get to where ever we're going to train. I'll be sure to go all out. Deal?" He huffed but lowered his weapons.

"Fine. But when we get there," He warned with a blood thirsty glare, "I'll bite you to death." And with that, he majestically exited. I sighed in relief and moved towards my brother.

"Better later than now," I admitted as I slung Dino's arm over my shoulder. "Looks like we're going on an adventure, Bro."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**So, I have the idea that Gokudera wouldn't really take physical training seriously (in the way that he just tries the same thing over and over again until he succeeds, since he's more of a mental/thinking person). In real battle, he's in that life or death mode, so he does better like when he's battling Chikusa. Cloud's goal is to get him into that during training to, so he can pick up the hints she's dropping about Bel's fighting styles and so he can pick out the wires and traps. Basically, she's pounding this into him until it becomes instinct. Yeah, I realized when writing this chapter that Cloud is an extremely harsh tutor, but that's actually a bit expected since she had Colonello and Fon and has watched Reborn half of her life. She's also pounding survival instincts into him, covering the 'value your life' thing. I seriously think she's enjoying it a bit too much, though.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question:**

**Any verbal quirks? Weird things you say often?**

For example: as most of you have noticed, I call people dolls and lovelies ALL THE TIME. I say "You're a doll" a lot and I don't know where I really picked that up? Also, when I trip or mess up at at something I ALMOST ALWAYS SAY "I didn't do that" or "You didn't see that", and if I say something weird, or bad or something and the person I'm talking to says "what?" I immediately say "what?" back. I have also been calling people pristine French hookers recently. Also, I have one female friend that calls me babe and I call her babe (don't ask how that started, it just did one day and it stuck) Yeah, I'm pretty quirky.

Oh, and I have been using the quote from LeeroyJenkinsstudio's Parady of KHR: "The amount of not care I have for this is so great, that it completely fills this entire universe, spilling out into the void beyond creating an entire other universe just for the amount of not care I have." I'm pretty sure I picked up "pristine French hookers" from him too, but maybe not? Anyway, you should totally check out his Reborn parody! It's totally awesome!

**-Klu**

**Edit: I forgot how much I loved Gokudera's and Cloud's relationship. There are actually a few parallel I noticed between that relationship and her relationship with Bel. Hm.**


	27. Why Promises are Made

**Chapter 27: Why Promises are Made**

**I don't own KHR, and I think that I actually didn't put any reference in here. Huh**

* * *

><p><strong>"I just don't believe violence is ever the answer. It is a question. The real answer is far more terrifying."<strong>

**-Joseph Fink & Jeremy Cranor (Cecil; Welcome to Night Vale: The Sandstorm)**

* * *

><p>"You sure he's going to keep following us?" I asked Dino as I looked back at Kyoya, who was following us on his motorcycle.<p>

"Yeah," Dino nodded, looking back at my from the front passenger seat, "since there are two people in this car that he's set on fighting, I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Two?" I asked, confused.

"Me and you," He elaborated. I blinked, then remembered that I had promised him a fight.

"_G__ǒ__up__ì__. _I forgot about that." I sighed and leaned my head against the car window.

"I'm just happy knowing I'm not his only target anymore," Dino noted, relief in his voice.

"Don't you care about your little sister? You don't want her to get mauled by a violent skylark, do you?" I asked hopefully.

"You were supposed to help me train him anyway," he pointed out. I ended the conversation by flicking him off and going back to making sure the prefect didn't venture off.

* * *

><p>"Rock, paper, scissors to see who goes first," I suggested as Dino and I stood across from Kyoya, who was tapping his foot in irritation. Dino sighed and held out his hands.<p>

"Fine, but remember, this was your idea, Cloud," he warned me.

"Two out of three?" I offered when his scissors beat my paper. He patted me on the back with a smile.

"Have fun!" He said and pushed me towards Kyoya. I managed to balance myself, and faced the prefect, who was wearing a blood thirsty smirk. I glanced around the area, taking in all the details I could before the battle began. The bamboo forest reminded me of China, so I was happy to know that I would have the geographical advantage, having trained in a place similar to this. I patted my back pocket, noting that there were knives from training Gokudera still there. Since Dino wouldn't let me use my guns, I felt better knowing I had at least some weapons on me. I had just enough time to take all of this in before Kyoya charged at me.

I ducked as his tonfa lashed out, then circled around, not wanting to attack just yet. I was testing him now, seeing how much he's improved and reading his movements. I do admit, he has improved. He's more aware of his own openings and covers them better. I continued dodging as I read his movements, then, by the time he was getting irritated, I began my counter attack. As he swung at me again, I ducked under his arm and jabbed his arm pit, making him falter for a second. Using that, I leaned back on one arm and swung the rest of my body around, kicking him in the back, sending him in the bamboo trees. I flipped back into a crouch, facing him. He recovered quickly and was charging at me once more. I huffed at his brashness, and reached into my back pocket, bringing out one of the knives and twirling it.

Lunging forward to meet him, I side stepped as if he were a bull, placing a small cut on his cheek, making him aware that I had the weapon. For a while after that, it was similar to a bull fight; he would lunge at me, and I would side step him, leaving small cuts anywhere I could. In the end, it was my fault that I got hit in the shoulder, since I was letting go a bit since I started to have fun. I cringed as the tonfa collided with my shoulder, but managed to lean back, and not get the full force of it. It was then that he did something that surprised me. He let go of one of his tonfas and grabbed my arm, easily swinging me around and flipping me over. I hit the ground with a hard thud, and he kneeled over me, holding my arm back and smirking. I let him have his moment before I pointed out the obvious to him.

"You would be dead right now," I breathed out, gesturing my head towards the knife that was right next to his neck. He frowned, realizing his mistake; he had let me get too close to him. In a real battle, I could have easily slit his throat at this point, tricking him into thinking he had the upper hand, when really I was just making sure I was in a position where I would be able to get to a vital point with my knife.

He grunted and fully stood up, releasing me. I pushed myself up and tenderly rubbed my shoulder, making a note never to get hit by Kyoya ever again. I looked up to find him glaring at me.

"What?" I asked carefully. He grabbed my wrist and held it up.

"You're wearing weights," he pointed out.

"Yeah," I stated, not really knowing what to say. "I've had them for a while now." His glare intensified, which led me to question him again. "What?"

"Why didn't you take the weights off to fight me?" I blinked and my mouth formed a small 'o'. That's what had him pissed. He thought that I thought he wasn't good enough to take my weights off. I shrugged.

"I guess I just forgot about them," I admitted. "I've gotten so used to them now." Which reminded me, after this I would have to add more weight on. Kyoya seemed to except my answer and began walking away. "Is that it?" I asked him.

"My goal was to get you back for the first time we fought," Kyoya explained, regained pride shining in his eyes. "Now that I've done that, I don't need to fight you anymore, or at least until I've noticed that you have grown strong enough for me to acknowledge you." He walked over to retrieve his other tonfa. "Besides," He continued, "I don't like fighting you." For a moment I was confused as to why this blood thirsty demon didn't like fighting me. "Your fighting style irritates me." Ah, I get it now. He doesn't like that he can't hit me. I shrugged and got up, careful not to put weight in my shoulder

"Fine by me if you don't want to fight anymore," I admitted, rolling my shoulder and wincing. "I don't exactly like being hit by you." He snorted and turned towards Dino.

"I suppose I'll take my irritation out on you." Dino let out a heavy sigh, and prepared his whip.

"And here, I was thinking that your fight would last longer," Dino complained. I quickly moved to the side, away from the fight that was about to occur. I walked around the perimeter of the clearing and headed towards my tent, already thinking of healing my poorly mistreated shoulder. I ducked inside and began the painful process, deciding to focus on the fight to distract from the intense pain.

It was strange, how much my and Kyoya's style differ. They're completely polar opposites, so it's natural that in a fight, we don't get far. His straightforwardness is what my fluid moves are designed to evade, leading to his frustration. I suppose it's a good thing, seeing that because of that, he won't be hounding me for a fight. Although, at the same time, he probably needs to learn to cope against tactics like mine in order to make him a better fighter. After all, the way we think in battles is completely different too. With that conclusion, I sighed loudly and fell back on the ground, exhausted from healing and thinking about all this tutoring business. I'll just wait until later to bring this up with Dino. And with that thought, I fell into a somewhat peaceful sleep.

* * *

><p>"Ah, there you are Chiavarone," Mukruo greeted me as I opened my eyes, finding myself in my dream garden. I pushed myself up and looked to see Hannah sitting beside me and Mukuro in front of us. "I was wondering when you would show up."<p>

"Can't you guys ever let me sleep?" I said with a yawn.

"Not our fault that you wake up in here," Hannah muttered coldly. "But you've been busy, right? I thought you weren't going to get involved?"

"Not my fault I'm training Gokudera," I snapped at her. "I was kind of forced into it anyway."

"You're training the Smoking Bomb?" Mukuro chuckled. "Kufufu, how amusing. And how is that working out for you, little Chiavarone?"

"It actually went pretty well," I admitted. "But, he's still no match for Bel. Although, with the time limit, I really don't know how it will work out. But, without any limit, Bel would win easily."

"You seem to have a lot of confidence in this Bel person," Mukuro idly noted.

"He's a monster," I admitted. "And a true genius. Anyone facing him in battle is unlucky." Mukuro hummed thoughtfully.

"That reminds me, Chiavarone," He said, taking on a more serious tone, "I need you to promise me something." I raised an eyebrow and Hannah leaned in, interested in our conversation for once.

"Promise?" I asked. "You want me to do something for you?"

"I need you to look after Chrome whenever you can," Mukuro said. "She's quite shy and I believe that a little female companionship might be good for her. She seems to only fully trust me, which can be a dangerous thing."

"It seems like you really care for her," Hannah stated. Mukuro sent her a withering look.

"She is my strongest connection to the outside world," Mukuro defended. "It's only natural that I would have to look after her. So, Chiavarone, will you do it? Will you swear to it?" Hannah and I shared a look at his reaction to the accusation she made. I nodded, leaning back on my arms.

"Sure, I promise look out for her," I agreed. Mukuro grew less tense, as if that was something that he had been worrying about.

"Good," he stated, returning to his normal attitude. "Now, tell me more about these ring battles."

"The sun battle should be going on tonight," I started, "then thunder, storm, rain, mist, cloud and lastly sky. Something happens where they make the sky battle an all-out battle with all the guardians, but I forgot what exactly..." I trailed off, scratching my head.

"You could look back at your memories." I blinked then looked over at Hannah. Mukuro gave her a strange look as well.

"What?" She blushed and turned away.

"I said that you can look back at your memories of reading the manga," she stubbornly muttered. "I... I can show you if you want."

"You would do that?" I asked her. She scoffed and gave me a hard look.

"It's not like I have anything better to do," she defended. Mukuro chuckled at her behavior and I gave her a warm smile.

"Thanks, Hannah."

* * *

><p>"According to Reborn, they're on their way to the sun battle right now," Romario reported, walking back from the phone call. Dino and I looked up at him from the small fire we had made. Kyoya, who was leaning against a bamboo tree a little ways off, didn't even react.<p>

"That should be Lussaria and Ryohei, right?" I muttered quietly. I frowned and stared into the fire, trying not to think of the flamboyant, martial artist I had become attached to. In fact, now that I think about it, I was attached to everyone in the Varia. I even had somewhat of a relationship with Levi, despite it being a hateful one. I leaned on my knees as I hugged them. Dino seemed to notice my mood. He slung his arm over my shoulder, and pulled me closer to him.

"You're pretty close to them, aren't you?" He asked, not having to clarify who he was referring to. I nodded numbly in response. "It's okay, Cloud," he said, trying to comfort me. "Everything will turn out fine in the end." I sighed and leaned in him for support.

"I hope you're right, Dino."

* * *

><p>"What are you doing, Kumo?" I looked up from my work and down at Kyoya.<p>

"Getting ready for your training session today," I simply replied. He raised a slender eyebrow. We had moved locations again, and while Dino and Romario were setting up the tent, I was busy setting up traps for Kyoya. We were currently in a forest, mountainous location. It was peaceful... for now. I was just hoping that none of the wildlife would trip the traps I had laid for Kyoya.

"You didn't answer my question clearly," Kyoya stated as I jumped down from the tree, landing beside him.

"I may not look like it," I started, "But I'm a somewhat expert at traps. I've been trained by one of the best, after all. Dino decided that he would use that expertise and training in your training." Kyoya frowned at my explanation. His frown deepened when I jumped up onto another tree branch, swinging myself up so that I was perched on it. His eyes narrowed.

"Your shoulder," he pointed out. "You were injured there yesterday." I paled slightly.

"Yes," I agreed slowly, trying not to fidget under his stern gaze.

"It's completely healed today," he further elaborated. I swallowed and looked away.

"I'm a fast healer?" I tried. He scoffed and stepped forward, only to trip a wire I had just finished setting. I smirked as a log came hurtling towards him, forcing him to dodge. This gave me time to escape from his interrogation. It wasn't long before he was chasing after me again. I was careful to avoid the traps I had been setting up all morning, but Kyoya wasn't so lucky. Sure, they slowed him down, but they didn't stop that monster.

Deciding to use this as a teaching opportunity for him to pick out strategies and traps, I threw some knives and embedded them into trees, making sure there was some wire attached to them. I turned, skidded to a stop and waited for the prefect. I didn't have to wait long before he came barging into the area, completely and totally furious. That fury turned into surprise however, when he was cut on the arm without me doing anything. He wisely stopped in his tracks, trusting his instinct.

"Kumo," he addressed me, "what did you do?" I held up my arms in mock innocence.

"I didn't do anything," I said innocently, batting my eyelashes. To prove my point, I threw two knives, making sure to use one of them to drive him in the wire that was attached to the other one. I hummed happily. Not completely up to Bel's level, but good enough to confuse Kyoya for now. His eyes narrowed. "Although you have strength Kyoya, you need to understand tactics to become a better fighter," I informed him.

"I see," he stated, straightening up. "You're using herbivorous tactics in order to survive." I frowned at his explanation.

"There's nothing herbivorous about it," I explained. "Some of the best predators use their wits to survive. In fact, those that know how to use their wits and don't just rely on pure strength are often the most dangerous. You have to be able to cope and know how to deal with these dangerous predators, and not always rely on your strength. I admit it's quite impressive, yet it won't get you out of everything. Violence isn't always the answer," I concluded, quite proud of my speech. For a moment, it seemed as if I had actually reached him.

"Or," he suggested, "I can just fight my way through it." He then began swinging his tonfas wildly, with all his strength, forcing the strings down. I blinked, completely shocked.

"That whole speech just went right over your head, didn't it?" I asked him once he was down, standing in the middle covered in scratches with a confident look on his face.

"Words are meaningless against true strength," he concluded with a conclusive nod. "However, I will admit that some predators can have some herbivorous tactics that are formidable." I scratched the back of my head, not sure whether to take that as a compliment or not.

"Thanks... I guess?" I shrugged. "I guess violence is always the answer for you."

* * *

><p>I groaned loudly as my phone went off, waking me up from my peaceful, much needed sleep. I blindly fumbled for it, snapping it open and hissing into it.<p>

"What?"

_"Where are you? My match it tomorrow night and I need more training!"_

"Gokudera, honey," I said, my voice practically dripping in sweetness. "It is _tā mā de _midnight and I need my sleep. Do you really think this is a good time to talk to me?"

_"But, my match is to-"_ I ended the call, turned the phone off and threw it outside the tent. And with that I easily fell back into blissful sleep.

* * *

><p>"This is yours, right?" I glanced up at Kyoya, who was holding a familiar looking phone out to me.<p>

"Oh, yeah," I answered, taking my phone from his hand. "Thanks, Kyoya."

"Why was your phone just lying around out here?" Dino asked, watching Kyoya from the corner of his eye. Currently, they were breaking for now (in Kyoya's case, it was a forced break), and Dino seemed to want it to continue that way. I have to admit, it was rather nice watching him try to beat someone other than me into a bloody pulp.

"I might have kind of thrown it outside when Gokudera called me in the middle of the night." Dino sighed at my explanation.

"I can't say that I'm not surprised," he admitted. I rolled my eyes and turned my phone on, finding 24 missed calls from Gokudera and surprisingly, one missed call and a text message from Bel.

"I guess I better call the poor guy back." And with that, I walked a little ways off, away from Dino and Kyoya, the latter looking like he was more than ready to fight again.

_"What the hell woman! Why didn't you pick up when I called!?"_ I almost winced at the loudness and anger radiating off his voice.

"One, because I was sleeping, and two, you pissed me off by calling last night," I bluntly informed him, casually leaning on a tree. "Now that I'm not sleeping, what do you want?"

_"I need more training! My battle is tonight and I still haven't passed your training."_

"I told you, you don't need to pass," I chided. "Just believe in yourself a little bit, will you? I know Tsuna believes in you, if that makes you feel any better."

_"Don't bring Tenth into this, woman! What if I'm not ready? What if I'm not strong enough to beat that guy tonight?"_

"Then you lose," I answered simply. "You lose the battle, but you are not going to lose your life, understand Smoking Bomb? I didn't waste my time training a dead man." He was silent for a while, taking in my words. After a sharp intake of breath, he spoke again.

_"Tell me about the guy I'm facing,"_ he quietly demanded, my words having calmed him down from his earlier panic.

"His name is Belphegor," I answered, finding it weird to say my friend's whole name, "but he's known as Prince the Ripper. Just so you can get the gist of his personality, he joined the Varia when he was eight, after having stabbed his twin brother to death. Basically, he joined them out of boredom." Gokudera remained silent on the other end, so I continued. "Bel's a genius and a great fighter, physically and mentally. No matter what you do, do not underestimate him. Also, as much as possible, try not to make him bleed." This seemed to get his attention.

_"Why is that important?"_

"Whenever he sees his own blood, it basically sends him into a frenzy. Trust me, I've seen it happen before and it's not pretty."

_"...and you're good friends with this guy?"_ I sighed.

"Yeah, I guess I do have to claim him, don't I?"

_"... you really need some better friends, Cloud."_

"Yeah...just, do us all a favor and don't die, okay? That's the only thing I'm asking from you, as your tutor, and, more importantly, as your friend. If you really can't win, then don't. Even if you do lose, I'm sure the others will cover for you." He sighed again, a sad, heavy sound.

_"I hope you're right."_ I scoffed, returning to my usual, playful attitude.

"I'm always right."

* * *

><p>"I wonder how the fights at Namimori are going," Dino said offhandedly to me as he dodged. I stared at Dino. He stared back, blinked, then realized what he said. He slapped his hand over his mouth and we both looked over at Kyoya. At first, it seemed like he didn't have a reaction. Then, in a sudden burst, rage filled his eyes and he stormed past Dino, who was roughly pushed out of the way by the infuriated prefect. Instead of trying to stop him physically, I decided to take the more practical approach.<p>

"Kyoya!" I called after him as I ran up beside him, passing Dino who was yelling useless words at his student. "Where are you going?"

"To punish those who disturbed the peace at Namimori," he answered. "Don't try to stop me, Kumo."

"I'm not trying to stop you," I pointed out as we approached his motorcycle. "I'm coming with you." He gave me a blank look

"What makes you think I'll let you crowd, Kumo?" He asked me with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll show you how I healed my shoulder so fast," I bartered. He seemed to consider it for a bit, then say Dino approaching. He frowned and looked back at me.

"Fine. Get on," he commanded, getting on the motorcycle himself. Since I was a little pressed for time, I didn't praise myself for my negotiation skills, but instead turned to yell at Dino once I was secure on the back of the bike.

"I'll make sure he doesn't get into too much trouble," I ignored the prefect's snort at this. "You guys can follow later. I'll try to keep him from destroying everything but no promises!" The bike roared to life, and jerked forward. I opted to hold onto the back of the seat rather than Kyoya, seeing that I don't think he would appreciate the physical contact.

Not looking back at Dino, knowing he would be irritated and distressed that _both_ of his charges were running off, I looked forward, trying to push back the dread of thinking about the battle that was about to start.

* * *

><p><em>"Of course you're coming to see the prince's battle tonight, right princess?"<em>

"I don't know Bel," I answered truthfully, as I waited for Kyoya to finish paying (intimidating) the cashier at the small gas station we had stopped at. "I probably won't get here in time... you're pouting," I accused him. "I can practically hear it through the phone." I re-positioned the phone and pivoted away from Kyoya and the small man that was now quaking in fear as the prefect glared at him. Bel clicked his tongue from the other end of the line.

_"You know me so well."_

"Maybe it's better that I don't see it though," I thought aloud. "Less stress and inner turmoil for me, after all."

_"Ushishi, you just don't want to see your precious student turn in a cactus."_

"Well, that too. At least I'm smart enough to know that there's no point in asking you to hold back, right?"

_"Bing-go."_ I sighed and leaned against Kyoya's bike. Looking inside the station again, I noticed that Kyoya was growing even more irritated. I then realized that he probably didn't bring any money with him or he didn't have enough.

"Hey, Bel, I got to go. See you later, okay?" I hesitated, thinking for the brief moment, that if something went, wrong, one little thing I changed, that maybe, there was the slight chance that I wouldn't see him later. "Promise me that, Bel. Promise that we will see each other again." Bel grew silent, immediately picking out the strain, stress and the small bit of fear in my voice.

_"I promise, Cloud."_ I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding.

"Thanks," I said before I hung up. I gathered myself a bit before walking into the station. That's one of the things that I loved about Bel, one of the many things that made our relationship work. We didn't ask questions, we didn't judge, we simply understood each other. We understood when we needed to be there for each other, and we understood what we needed to say when. It was simply the beautiful art of understanding each other. And I didn't want to lose someone that understood me the way he did. Not again.

"I'm s-sorry, sir, but without money you can't-"

"I am the head of the Disciplinary Committee of Nammimori," Kyoya threatened, "and if you refuse to give me gas that I was kindly willing to pay back in due time, then I will bite you to death." I quickened my pace at those words.

"Hey, Kyoya, although I know you would keep your word, let me pay for this right now," I assured him, bringing my fat wallet out form my back pocket (one of my number rules is to always pay in cash, so it wouldn't be traced, unless I wanted someone (namely Dino) to know where I was). Looking over to see how much it was, I quickly handed the money over to the man who seemed more than happy to be dealing with a more, well, _reasonable_ person. Kyoya blinked, then glared down at me. I glanced up at him after telling the poor, shaken man to keep the change.

"What?"

"You didn't have to do that."

"It made things easier, so why not?" He snorted and turned away. I assumed that was the end of the conversation, but was surprised when he threw a helmet at me. I managed to catch it with ease and gave him a confused look.

"It's illegal to ride a motorcycle without a helmet," he half-explained. I blinked, looked down at the helmet, then back to him.

"What about you?" I asked him. I almost cowered back from how intense the look he gave me was. I quickly shut up and eventually we were on our way again. After getting over my own stupidity for asking that question, I began pondering Kyoya's actions, but quickly dismissed it, focusing instead on the scenery as we sped off to Namimori.

Kyoya's such a weird guy. I thought back to Bel, then to Yamamoto's obliviousness about everything around him. I scrunched my nose and shook my head. The guys I know are just weird in general. Oh well. At least they were pretty.

* * *

><p>"Gokudera is going up against such a fearsome person..." Tsuna muttered, paling at the thought of losing his friend. "Wait! Is this the guy Cloud knows? She knows such a scary guy?" He turned to his tutor, who was hopping down off the wall to stand in front of his student.<p>

"Cloud is a unique individual with connections in strange places," Reborn explained. "And one of those places is the Varia. However, her relationship with Belphegor is beneficial to us." Tsuna cocked his head, confused.

"How does her being friends with him help us...?"

"If you shut up and listen, then maybe you'll know," Reborn scolded his student for interrupting. "Cloud knows how he thinks, his battle habits, and how he fights; all important facts that are beneficial to Gokudera. Along with Cloud's strategic mind and the information she has, she's the perfect tutor for Gokudera. It helps that they think in similar ways as well."

"I just can't believe she has such dangerous friends!" Tsuna mumbled, scratching his head, thinking of his 'sister'.

"What can I say, she's a people person," Reborn chirped. Before Tsuna could question his tutor further, his guardians greeted him at the school gates.

"Yo," the rain guardian candidate chirped, raising a hand.

"Yamamoto! Big Brother! Huh? Where's Gokudera?" Tsuna glanced around, not seeing the bomber.

"I thought he was with y-"

"Tenth!" The group turned to see Gokudera running toward them, completely prepped for battle. He bowed deeply when he reached his beloved boss. "Sorry I couldn't walk with you here, tenth, I was preparing for the battle." Yamamoto laughed and slung a friendly arm around Gokudera as they began to walk in.

"So you passed Cloud's training, huh? I'm sure that was a lot of fun!" Gokudera's face fell at his words. He clenched his fist and looked away, almost embarrassed, mostly ashamed.

"...no. I didn't pass her training." There was a beat of silence, which Tsuna broke.

"It's fine Gokudera!" He reassured his friend. "I'm sure you'll still do great. Just don't push yourself too hard, okay?" Gokudera's face immediately lit up at his boss's words.

"You really think so, Tenth?!" He asked, his eyes practically sparkling. Tsuna laughed nervously and leaned back slightly.

"O-of course, Gokudera! You are my friend after all."

* * *

><p>Bel frowned as he scanned the opposing group walking in, and voiced his disappointment to the small figure beside him.<p>

"Looks like the princess didn't come." Mammon clicked his tongue in response.

"So? Why should she come to watch your fight anyway? This is a dispute between the Vongola." Bel shrugged, a smile slipping back onto his face.

"I just thought she might enjoy seeing me fight~"

"It's not like she hasn't seen you fight before. Stop being such a cheeky brat." Bel snorted, turned and grabbed Mammon's cheek.

"Who are you calling cheeky, cheeky?" Luckily for the illusionist, Bel had to let go once the Cervello began explaining the battle ground, rules and the consequences, then the two storm guardians were called to meet in the center of the hallway.

Prince the Ripper stepped forward to meet his opponent wearing a grin, confident that he was going to win.

* * *

><p><em>"What's the role of the storm guardian?" Gokudera looked up at his tutor after dodging a knife with a confused expression. She sighed, but explained. "The center of battle, the raging storm that can fight its way through, the vanguard, the support. The Storm Guardian must always be prepared," she elaborated, looking down at her student from her perch. "You have to learn how to adapt and fight in different situations, and how to always be on your toes. This training will help you be more observant, to notice little things, changes. At least," she concluded, sending a smirk his way. "That's the effect we're going for." He took on a thoughtful, almost doubtful look.<em>

_"You really think I can do all that?" he asked. She snorted and crossed her arms._

_"I don't know. Do you think you can?"_

* * *

><p>It was all too similar, almost easy in fact. Cloud's training had prepared him for this, almost to the point that it seemed like she knew exactly what his fight would be like. That was a thought he had quickly dismissed, seeing that it would be impossible for her to know something like this. Although, as he barely dodged another set of knives that were thrown at him, that hit too close for comfort, he couldn't help but to notice that something wasn't right with this.<p>

That guys knives were too accurate. It didn't matter how much skill you had, nobody could perfectly navigate weapons in these random blasts of wind. There was that, and the trick Belphegor had pulled at the very beginning. It didn't take Gokudera long to realize that wires were the answer to this problem. As a plan formed in his head, Gokudera smirked in anticipation, feeling confident in this fight.

He was going to win for his tutor, his boss, and his family.

* * *

><p>"T-that's amazing," Tsuna muttered in disbelief. "He's dodging everything like it's nothing!"<p>

"This is the result of training with Cloud," Reborn chirped. "She used the fastest way to train him for taking on these kinds of attacks and being able to counter them. I suppose it's pure luck that the battle field turned out to be similar to Gokudera's training grounds. Either way, she did a good job of preparing him in such little time. He actually has a chance of winning now."

"I didn't even know Cloud was capable of something like this. I've never even seen her fight before..." Tsuna muttered, trailing off when he became distracted by the fight. Reborn, on the other hand, was still on the subject of Cloud.

It wasn't luck that she prepared Gokudera for exactly what the battle would be like, and he knew that. Then again, she always knew something, always. And that had always bothered the hitman. Reborn fully intended to find out what Cloud knew... someday, eventually. He was content as long as whatever she was keeping to herself wasn't something too important.

Still, Reborn would figure it out someday. He was the world's best hitman, after all.

* * *

><p>It was nice, not having to take down the people attacking you yourself. I just simply followed Kyoya as he easily fought his way into his school, completely pissed off. On that note, it was also nice not having him being pissed off at me. I almost winced as Kyoya sent one unfortunate person flying out a window. I glanced ahead, hearing very familiar voices. Kyoya kicked another opponent away as he entered the hallway. I hung back for a bit, letting Kyoya have his grand entrance, and listened in on the conversation, only stepping forward after Kyoya had tripped Levi when he had tried to attack the prefect.<p>

"Kyoya," I warned as he turned to face Squalo, but Yamamoto luckily stepped in before me.

"Calm down, Hibari," He tried, stepping between him and Squalo. "I know you're angry bu-"

"You're in the way," Kyoya interrupted him. "Don't stand in front of me." My eyes widened in mild surprise as I saw Yamamoto's smooth movements to apprehend Kyoya. Although not completely obvious, I could tell that Kyoya was surprised as well.

"That long-hair guy is my opponent. Please be patient a little while longer." I couldn't help but feel a little bit proud as Yamamoto said those words, seeing how much he's grown and how cool he's become. I quickly glanced over at Squalo, who also had a thoughtful look on his face. He seemed to feel my gaze and looked up. I saw mild surprise in his eyes, then he looked away. I looked back to find Kyoya threatening to bite Yamamoto to death. I decided that this would be a good time to step in.

"Hey, Kyoya, wait! Remember our deal we made earlier?" He stopped, seemingly considering my words. He frowned.

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Well," I said, stepping between him and Yamamoto even more, having gained some confidence by getting him to at least pause. "If you don't let loose now, I'll add another promise." He raised an eyebrow at me.

"I understand you're interested in fighting Rokudou Mukuro?" His eyes narrowed, having become fully focused on my words. I tried not to fidget as I felt Reborn and Tsuna's gazes on me as well. "If you go with the ring battles and hold back until your fight then you'll be able to fight him again."

"Oh? Really." He put his tonfas down. I managed to catch the bloodthirsty look in his eyes before he turned the Cervello. "All the damages to the school building must be repaired."

"Yes. We the Cervello will be responsible for that."

"Is that so... I've changed my mind." He began heading towards a flight of stairs nearby. "Don't lose to the one over there before my turn comes around," he addressed Yamamoto without looking back. "See you." I was debating whether to follow him or not, but decided against it, knowing that he would keep his word.

"Hibari, he... stopped fighting," Tsuna muttered in disbelief.

"From this alone, you can see the depth of the humiliation Hibari suffered at Mukuro's hands. But, I'm surprised that you could calm him down, Cloud." I stiffened as Reborn turned his gaze to me. "And that you have the means of setting up a fight between Mukuro and Hibari. I wasn't aware that you knew that much about Mukuro. What's your connection to him, Cloud?" I laughed nervously as the whole group turned their attention to me. Surprisingly enough, Squalo saved me.

"Voi! Katana brat! Where did you learn to move like that?! I like it! And this way your chances of winning have gone from zero percent, to still being zero percent." I managed to hold back an eye roll at Squalo's words. I scanned the Varia, but froze when I realized something.

Bel wasn't with them.

Completely ignoring everything else, my mind raced, trying to remember what happened in the original plot. If I was right, then Bel's unconscious, but _breathing,_ body should be carried by Gola Mosca. But as I watched the Varia jump out the window, I realized that Bel wasn't with them. And out of all the possibilities that I could think of the most obvious one is...

I quickly turned to Gokudera and noticed that he was holding a ring. He noticed me looking at him and held it up, confirming my thoughts.

"I did it!" He happily told me. "I managed to get the ring from him and get away before the explosions!" I couldn't even manage to put on a happy face for my student. My fists clenched, knowing, just knowing, that they wouldn't help him. It wasn't their policy. They would, no, they _did _just leave him to die.

I sprinted down the hallway, not even caring about anything else at this point. My mind was racing, trying to remember the last room they would have battled in. I went on autopilot. Throughout my panic, something in my head stayed calm and continued to give me commands, directions. Something continued to drive me.

I barely reacted when I almost ran into Kyoya, probably surveying the damage done to the school. Of course, I didn't even think of that as I passed him, solely focused on finding Bel.

I wasn't relieved when I found him. In fact, I didn't feel much of anything. I simply checked for his pulse. Even then, when I had managed to find the bare sliver of a pulse, I didn't allow myself to be relieved. I put on my gloves, and examined his wounds, knowing I had a lot of work to do, and knowing that I might not be able to do it.

"What are you doing, Kumo?" I was snapped out of my state by Kyoya, who had apparently followed me.

"You wanted to see how I healed my shoulder, right?" I said, trying not to think about how bad Bel's injuries were and just how much blood he's lost by this point. "Then start paying attention." With more vigor and drive than I had ever used before, yellow flames sprang to life across my palms. I immediately set to work, targeting the major areas first, blocking out everything around me as I worked. After a while, my vision blurred and my breaths came out ragged. I was about to pass my limit, and I was well aware of that.

I kept going. Bel needed me, and as long as somebody needed me, I was going to my best to help them. I steadied myself as I swayed, determined to see this through. Even though I had already gotten him out of the danger zone, I was determined to finish this. My body didn't agree with me. I began coughing up bits of blood and my body was shaking from exhaustion. I swayed again, not able to steady myself. As I fell, I watched as the world faded around me, but I didn't feel myself hitting the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Hm, cliffhanger, I guess? It was kind of intense for me writing that last bit, because, you know Cloud is completely freaking out and going into that mode. ANGST!**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question:**

**Favorite Character type?**

I actually have two that differ somewhat drastically, but in a way, their ultimate goal is still the same. One of them is the physically strong, brash, irrational thinking, one minded types that burst in swinging and don't really care about anything else other than fighting (prime examples are Yata Misaki (K), Shizuo Heiwajima (Durarara), Korra (Legend of Korra), Michiko Malandro (Michiko e Hatchin) and Hibari Kyoya (I'm not even going to bother)). The other is the calm, manipulating type that doesn't care what others really think, they just get what they want. They are usually somewhat charismatic and know how to use people to get what they want. Examples of these are Azula (Avatar: the Last Airbender), Irene Adler (Sherlock), Mukuro (Not going to bother~) and Izaya Orihara (Durarara). Although, either way, both types get what they want, and they don't really care how they have to take down to get that. I guess you could sum it up by saying I like characters with strong ambition.

**-Klu**


	28. Not Quite Six Feet

**Chapter 28: Not Quite Six Feet **

**I don't own KHR, but I do own my insane, idiotic, original characters.**

* * *

><p><strong>"People know what they do; frequently they know why they do what they do; but what they don't know is what they do does."<strong>

**-Michael Foucault**

* * *

><p><em>"When you strike, make sure it counts." I side-stepped Gokudera's lunge and we fell into rhythmic movements; him wildly throwing punches and me simply dodging his desperate attempts. "If all your attacks are useless and meaningless," I continued, leaning back on one arm and swinging my whole body around, landing a square kick in my student's stomach, effectively taking him down, "then you won't have any energy left for the attacks that matter. Conserve your energy and put it towards game ending moves."<em>

_"Is that why you just dodge all the time like a coward?" He asked bitterly, pushing himself up from the ground._

_"Cowards survive," I responded without hesitation. "And with your opponent, you need to think like one to survive. You can't afford to waste your time and energy on meaningless attacks in your battle. When you attack, aim for places that are crippling, try to make sure that if you run, he can't follow."_

_"Are you saying that I should just run away and not finish the fight?" Our eyes met, his filled with fiery passion, countering my calm logic._

_"Only if you know that he can't follow," I responded coolly._

* * *

><p>It was strange, actually being too tired to meet with Mukuro and Hannah for once. I guess that also I wore my mind out when I went overboard…. Okay, maybe overboard is a little bit of an understatement for what I did.<p>

It took me a while to get a firm grasp of my surroundings. I figured I was in a hospital like room, considering the beeping noise beside me. I guessed that it was the hospital Dino rented out, since I don't think they would put me in any other hospital. The fact that I was in a different place brought up a number of questions. Who brought me here? How long was I out? Is Bel okay?

All of the questions stopped when I heard the soft turn of a page and the light scratching of pencil on paper beside me, alerting me to the fact that there was someone else in the room with me. I stiffened immediately, knowing that whoever it was had enough experience to conceal their presence to where the things that gave them away were the pencil and paper they were holding. There was a pause, and the sound of shifting cloth. Then they delivered a strong kick to my leg. I groaned loudly, opening my eyes and turning my head to face the figure sitting beside my bed.

_"Since you're awake now, you can help me with this crossword puzzle,"_ a familiar voice drawled in German. _"What is a five letter English word for extremely stupid?"_

_"Idiot?"_ I supplied, after confirming who it was.

_"Cloud,"_ she corrected, snapping the small, crumpled book shut and dropping it onto the floor. I looked away from her intense gaze.

_"Hey, Zhanna,"_ I awkwardly greeted_. "Really didn't expect to see you here."_

_"After a short mission in Japan, I decided to come visit my young, stupid, friend just to say hello, only to find her almost dead from flame exhaustion. I dare you to try to guess how pissed off I was."_

_"How'd you find me anyway?"_

_"Ahya,"_ she replied irritably, swinging her feet up on the bed and leaning back in her chair, clearly still pissed off.

"Ah," I muttered, understanding instantly. Zhanna was the youngest of four, her oldest brother being next in line to be the boss of the Giegue Family. Each sibling excelled in a certain area, Zhanna's area of expertise being strength and her sister's, Ahya, being tracking. In fact, her older sister is renowned for it, known to be able to track down anything and anyone. So, finding a friend of her little sister's would be no problem for her, which led to Zhanna sitting in front of me now.

_"You haven't even contacted Green yet, have you?"_ I blinked, then groaned loudly again, bringing my arm up to smack my head. This resulted in a rather large head ache on my part.

_"Don't move around too much,"_ Zhannah advised me. _"You just need to gain back the energy you wasted."_

_"And how do I do that, exactly?"_ I asked, rubbing my temples.

_"Resting and eating. Don't worry too much, little horse,"_ she poked me roughly in the shoulder, giving me her best assuring smile (which was more scary than reassuring, but I was kind of used to it by this point). _"I know what to do in this situation. After all,"_ she crossed her arms behind her head, and got comfortable in the chair. _"I went through the same thing when I was about your age. Although the symptoms are always different for everyone."_

_"You overused your flames?"_ I asked, interested. It was hard to picture Zhanna in a weakened state.

_"Yeah,"_ she confirmed. _"Back when I was an amateur, like you."_

_"Thanks,"_ I muttered dryly, falling back into deep thoughts. _"How's Bel?"_

_"Alive. Not up yet, but alive,"_ she answered with almost an annoyed and slightly angry tone. I decided to let that slide for now, not wanting to question her about it in case she would get angry. _"That was a stupid thing to do, little horse. Healing an enemy, huh?"_

_"He's not my enemy,"_ I corrected, _"he's my friend."_ She huffed and looked at me with judging eyes. She then let out a bark of harsh laughter.

_"You're a gray character, little horse, with dangerous friends in dangerous, strange places."_

_"And you're one of those dangerous friends,"_ I reminded her, leaning back onto the bed feeling a little more at ease knowing Bel was alive. She smirked and nodded her head in agreement. A calm silence filled the room and Zhanna left me to my own thoughts. She picked up the crossword puzzle book I had given her some time ago (to help her learn English. However, all it really seemed to do was piss her off, leading to it being so crumpled) and flipped through it once more, while I thought about my actions.

I probably confused Tsuna and his group that was standing there. There was also Dino to worry about. No doubt, he would be worried and wonder why I passed out and why I'm so weak now. And of course that led to the flames that I was kind of supposed to be hiding. I sighed and looked at Zhanna. Our eyes met and after understanding why I looked so nervous, she handed me my phone from the small table sitting beside the bed.

I was impatient as I waited for him to pick up. Meanwhile, Zhanna moved to the door to watch for people barging in while I contacted the scientist.

"So, Verde," I greeted when he picked up. "Exactly how bad would it be if, say, a few people found out about the flames and the gloves?"

_"…. You're an idiot,"_ he concluded after my first sentence. _"How many know?"_

"Well," I began, using my fingers to count. "Basil and Kyoya know, but I don't think they know about flames and stuff. That's two who have for sure seen it, and possibly Bel if he was even conscious when I was healing him. But, after what I did," I said that part quickly and quietly, "I'm pretty sure others will start to ask questions." There was a long, tired sigh on the other end of the line before he spoke.

_"The reason I told you not to tell anybody is so that no one else could steal the concept or the prototype and sell it as their own. Who are the ones that will question you about it?"_

"Dino and Reborn, most likely." I could practically hear the scowl he was wearing.

_"Him, huh? I guess he's too prideful to do something like that….. As long as it doesn't fall into the wrong hands and you're smart about who knows, I'll let you're little slip up slide,"_ he moved on almost immediately. _"Now, what are the side effects of the prototypes?"_

"Immense pain," I said immediately. "It heals, but it's an extremely painful process. Also, exhaustion on my part, which kind of led to flame exhaustion."

_"Of course you would use too many flames**,"**_ he scolded, _"you don't have many to begin with. That's why it's good you have such precise control over them, but you still need to practice until you have perfect control, if you're going to get better at healing. I will also work on the gloves, making it easier to control the amount of flames you use and be precise about that amount. I was expecting it to be a painful process as well."_

"Wait, you knew it was going to hurt the person I healed?"

_"The flames that you use to heal are pure sun flames, but your flames in particular are quite…. harsh. Almost acidic. Basically, what you're doing is accelerating the healing process so that what can be done in weeks can be done in seconds. It's only natural that when you speed up that natural process that it would be painful for the person who you're healing."_

"Right, right," I nodded, a little miffed that he knew this, but failed to tell me, "good to know that I bring people pain when I heal. Will all sun flames heal like this?" I asked, not remembering Lussaria or Ryohei having this effect when they heal.

_"No. Your flames, the speed at which the wound heals, and the flames directly contacting the skin all contribute to the pain. You could use this to your advantage and build up a high pain tolerance."_

"Good to know. Anything else?"

**_"_**_No. Just be careful with the gloves. Don't act like an idiot again."_

"Right," I replied dryly, "I'll try not to. Thanks, Verde." He simply ended the call. I sighed and put the phone down. Zhanna walked back over and sat down again.

_"Good timing, Little Horse. You're brother is just about to barge in."_

"Oh, great," I grumbled, already tired just from talking to Verde. "Now I have to explain stuff." Zhanna shrugged and leaned back, propping her feet on the bed again.

_"You could always pretend like you're asleep,"_ she supplied. I blinked.

"Oh, yeah. I'll just do tha-" Dino decided to walk in that exact moment, Romario behind him. His eyes went from wide and surprised to narrowed when he saw me awake.

"Good, you're awake. You have some explaining to do," He said, with a half-relived, half-you're-in-trouble look on his face.

_"Pìhuà_," I turned to Zhanna. _"Help me?" _She simply chuckled in response. Dino seemed to notice that she was in the room. Although discrete, his posture stiffened a bit.

"I see that you're still here, Ursa." Dino greeted Zhanna.

"I stay by my friends," She replied slowly in Japanese, smirking. I stared at her. She noticed my gaze.

"What?"

"You know Japanese?" She nodded. My eyes narrowed.

"Then why have we been speaking German?" She shrugged.

"I'm better at German."

"And Ursa?" I asked.

_"Somewhat of an assassin name,"_ She replied, switching back to German to move the conversation along. Meanwhile Dino stood there numbly watching our interaction. He then shook his head and got back on subject.

"Cloud, stop trying to avoid my questions," he scolded. I blinked up at him owlishly.

"I haven't been avoiding them. You haven't asked me any ques-"

"What are these?" He held up my gloves. I kept a calm face.

"Well, Dino," I started. "Those are gloves." For a moment I thought he was going to smack me with the gloves, but then his expression deadpanned. He took a moment to calm himself, then continued (Romario and Zhanna were attempting to hold back laughter at my answer. Well, Romario was trying, Zhanna just burst out laughing).

"I know," he started slowly, "that they're gloves, Cloud. What are they used for? You got them after you went to Mafia Island, and you've had them with you everywhere you go. Then, she," he pointed at Zhanna, who had somewhat regained her composure at this point, "brings you and Belphegor here, looking like a corpse."

"Did I really look that bad?" I interrupted him. He ignored me and continued.

"And from your symptoms, you look like you have flame exhaustion, which leads me to thinking that these gloves are some kind of weapon that require flames. But, I have no idea how you could have known about flames, or where you could have gotten a weapon that uses them. You want to explain this to me, Cloud?" He finished with a stern look. I let out a sigh of relief and laughed lightly.

"Oh, good, I didn't know if you knew about flames yet," I said, smiling. Dino's expression dropped and was replaced with a very confused look.

"Huh?"

"Well, I might as well tell you know, I wasn't just training with Colonello at Mafia Land," I admitted. "He managed to contact Verde, you know, the green Acrobaleno with mad science skills, and Verde figured out my flames types and gave me some new toys." Dino blinked, processing all the information I had just thrown at him.

"Okay," he said, nodding his head numbly. "Okay. I have a few - no, a lot of questions. First, did you say types? As in multiple attributes?"

"Yep," I said, popping the 'p'. "Rain, cloud and sun."

"And then you said he gave you multiple things?"

"New guns, new rifle and gloves," I elaborated.

"And he just gave this to you? From what Reborn said about that guy it seems unlikely that he would just give away things like that."

"... yeah. He just... gave them to me." Zhanna snorted at my response and rolled her eyes. Dino seemed to it slide and moved on.

"Well, I didn't expect you to tell me that so easily," Dino admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "Okay, last question; at what point did you think that it was okay to do all of this without my permission?" I opened my mouth, ready to answer. Then, thinking better of it, I promptly shut my mouth. I smiled nervously up at my brother. His expression remained unamused. I moment of silence passed.

"Love you, Dino?" I tried. He shook his head and began turning around.

"You're grounded." I blinked, processing his words.

"Wait, what?" I tried to push myself out of bed, but Zhanna's arm shock up and pushed me back before I could react. I shot her a glare (which she gladly returned) before turning my head back to Dino.

"You're grounded," Dino repeated as Romario opened the door for him. "You are not to leave this hospital until I say you can. I'm tired of you always going off on your own and doing dangerous things. So, you're grounded."

"But that's not fair," I whined, even admitting to myself that I sounded childish.

"I'm doing this for your own good, Cloud." And with one last stern look, Dino shuck the door. I groaned loudly, rubbing my temples.

_"If I'm not mistaken,"_ Zhanna commented, clearly amused by the outcome, _"You've had this coming for a while."_

_"Not helping, Zhanna."_

_"It wasn't my intention to, Little horse."_

* * *

><p><em>Hibari managed to catch the girl before she hit the ground. Not knowing what else to do he laid her on the ground, then looked around. It was rare that Hibari Kyoya was in a situation where he had absolutely no idea what to do. Usually, he would resolve things with pure strength and violence, but in this scenario that would not work. From what he understood, the guy Cloud was healing was an enemy to Tsunsyoshi Sawada's group, which is why he was confused when she helped him. He was aware of the fact that the girl was close to Sawada and was on his side, yet she helped his enemy. Not only was he confused, but he had no idea what to do with the unconscious bodies in front of him. Just when the thought of leaving them there entered his head, he tensed up and drew his weapons, sensing major killing intents coming his way.<em>

_He whipped around as two shapes jumped through the already broken window behind him. His eyes narrowed as he surveyed the two strangers; two females, the smaller of the two wearing a skull looking mask and the other's bare face covered in scars. He immediately pinned the larger one as stronger; more of a threat, more of a challenge. The larger woman's eyes darted behind him, seeing Cloud on the ground. Her eyes narrowed and met his again, filled with rage. Hibari's own eyes widened, not out of fear, but out of excitement. He smirked, looking forward to a fight. With the intense aura this stranger had, there was no doubt that she was strong._

_"Who the fuck are you and what the hell did you do to her," She snarled in slow, broken Japanese. Hibari's smirk widened. The woman's fist clenched, and she moved to step forward. An arm shot out in front of her before she could make her move. Her head snapped to face the smaller of the two woman, the one wearing the mask. Hibari's eyes narrowed as the masked woman spoke in another language; their conversation going right over his head, irritating him. He snarled, fed up with waiting, and eager for a battle (since he was stopped earlier) and he lunged forward._

_The woman with the scarred face was his target, naturally. He saw her smirk as he swung his tonfa towards her. With one arm she grabbed it, pulling the tonfa down. In the next few seconds she swung her leg around, nailing the boy in the stomach, sending him crashing into the wall a few feet away. She smirked triumphantly as Hibari shakily pushed himself up, coughing up a bit of blood. The smaller woman let out an audible sigh, putting her head in her hands and shaking it._

_Hibari tensed as the scarred woman stepped forward again, but was stopped when the other put her hand on the larger one's shoulder. The masked one shook her head, then after a few words that Hibari could not understand, she gestured towards Cloud. She then looked back at Hibari, who was scowling at them._

_"Forgive my little sister for her actions," the masked woman said in almost perfect Japanese, "when provoked, Zhanna can become quite...ravenous. We are simply here to check on a friend of hers." She glanced over at 'Zhanna', who was checking Cloud's pulse. "And I'm sure she is glad we did check. Although," her tone become darker as she revealed more of her aura, "I would not provoke her again in the future. You are lucky that I was here to prevent her from finishing the job, but I will be leaving soon and I assume that Zhanna will stay with her friend for some time. If you do not want to be humiliated again, I would advise you not to approach my little sister."_

_Hibari remained silent, his pride slightly wounded. However, thinking back, even he would admit to himself that these were not people he should be messing with. They were too strong and had experience. He knew this just from looking at Zhanna's eyes, and he was sure that if the other was not wearing the mask, he would see the same thing. These people were out of his league and he could not defeat them... yet. When he attacked, he rushed forward simply because he was still on the battle high from earlier. Next time, he would be more careful. His eyes wandered to the larger one, the one the other called Zhanna, and vowed that next time he fought her, he would win._

_"If you are allies with the girl," the smaller woman continued, drawing his attention away from Zhanna and back to her, "rest assured that she will be taken care of. My little sister chooses her companions wisely and stays by their side. She will take the girl back to her family and look after her." She ended the conversation with that, then walked over to Zhanna, who was about to pick Cloud up. Hibari watched as the two talked for a bit and met Zhanna's eyes when she looked over at him._

_He involuntary shivered and she grinned eerily at him, the numerous scars on her face adding to the effect. He calmed himself and managed to glare back. She laughed, flicked him off, and draped both Cloud and the unconscious blonde over her shoulder. His body shook again, but this time, it was because of rage. And with that rude gesture still fresh in his mind, the two women escaped out the window, leaving a furious Hibari Kyoya behind. In that moment, he made a vow, a promise he would be sure to keep._

_"I'll bite her death!"_

* * *

><p>The door was violently kicked open, revealing Zhanna carrying multiple grocery bags walking into my hospital room.<p>

_"Back,"_ she stated coolly as she dumped the bags in the chair. _"You didn't try to go anywhere, did you?"_

_"I couldn't of,"_ I elaborated, holding up my arm as much as the chain allowed me to, _"You handcuffed me to the bed. You know, I didn't really expect my own friend to help keep me locked up here."_

_"You need to stay put for recovery,"_ she said sternly. She grabbed a bag and threw it on my lap. _"Eat."_ I peeked inside and looked back at her, raising an eyebrow.

_"That's a lot of food."_ She nodded. _"I can't eat that much food."_ She huffed and leaned in, closer to me. I resisted the urge to lean back.

_"Look, you want to get better or not? Because right now, I'm feeling gracious enough to take care of my friend and help her get better. Are you saying that you don't appreciate my help?"_

_"I'm not saying that I don't appreciate your help, Zhanna,"_ I began, choosing my next words carefully, "_it's just that I don't see how eating a bunch of food is going to help me get my energy back."_

_"Food gives you energy, so if you eat a lot of food, you get more energy."_ I blinked, trying to absorb her logic.

_"Look, although that... makes sense, I really don't think it's doing any good just lying in bed. At least let me get up and walk around. Let me see Bel! Dino said that I can't leave the hospital, and Bel is in the hospital. At least let me see my friend."_ I gave her my best pleading look. She seemed to think about it for a while, then moved to unlock the handcuffs.

_"Fine. Just try to get up."_ I was hesitant at first, not fully trusting the smirk on her face. But, the urge to see my best friend drowned my suspicions and I quickly pushed myself up, and swung my feet over the bed. The moment I was standing, I immediately regretted my decision. Black spots clouded my vision and I began to lose my balance. I swayed to and fro, suddenly light headed, trying to find stability. Zhanna offered no help as I fell back onto the bed. She looked down at me, still smirking.

_"Told you. Now eat,"_ She demanded, grabbing my arm and moving me back to laying correctly on the bed.

_"Where's Dino?"_ I asked as I started eating, eager to move on from that embarrassing point.

_"I passed him on the way in. He was going to the rain battle."_

_"He told you that?"_ I asked. She snorted.

_"No. Your brother is wary of me,"_ she said, almost proudly. _"Smart man."_

_"I'm not scared of you,"_ I pointed out.

_"That's because you're an idiot."_

_"Thanks. But I can't believe he went to Yamamoto's and Squalo's battle without me,"_ I complained through mouthfuls. Zhanna let out a bark of laughter.

_"Yeah, sure! Like you're in any state to be going anywhere. You can't even stand up, Little Horse. Or do you need to try again just to be sure?"_

_"No, no, I'm fine,"_ I quickly replied. _"But I really do need to go to the battle tomorrow."_

_"Hm?"_ Zhanna raised an eyebrow at me. _"Why tomorrow?"_

_"The person fighting... he's a pen pal of sorts,"_ I elaborated, trying to find o word to describe my relationship with Mukuro. _"And I'm pretty sure he wants me to be there, to watch him fight."_ Also, I needed to meet Chrome, too. After all, I need to keep my promise to Mukuro to take care of her, and in order to do that, I need to get to know her. Zhanna blinked, as if just remembering something.

_"Oh, yeah, speaking of fighting,"_ she started, swinging her feet up on the bed again as she sat down, _"I've been meaning to ask you. When we found you there was this annoying bastard with you. Dark hair, school uniform, pissy look."_ I blinked and stared at her, knowing exactly who she was talking about. I paled.

"_Gao yang jong duh goo yang, what did you do?" _She shrugged nonchalantly.

_"He provoked me, pissed me off and ran at me so I kicked him into a wall,"_ she recalled as if it were nothing. For a moment, I simply sat there with my mouth open, trying to picture Zhanna kicking Kyoya into a wall. The image came a little too easily. I sighed, shook my head and resisted the strong urge to facepalm since I did not want a stronger head ache than the one I already had.

_"That guy holds grudges,"_ I warned her, _"I have no doubt that he's planning to kill y- no, he's planning to bite you to death as we speak. Now, I need to know, is that all you did?"_ She scratched her chin, thinking.

_"No, no,"_ she recalled, motioning with her hand that was missing her pinky and pointer finger. _"I flicked him off too," _She said a little too happily.

_"You flicked him off?"_ I repeated slowly. She nodded proudly.

_"Yeah, I flicked him off. His expression was pretty funny after I did it too,"_ She admitted laughing.

_"You flicked Hibari Kyoya off?"_ I repeated once more, for my own sake. _"You know, if you were anyone else, I would be fearing for your life, but sense it's you... I'm actually a bit more worried for Kyoya."_ She shrugged once more.

_"Bastard had it coming,"_ were the words she ended the discussion on, and for once, thinking about Kyoya's actions towards people he thinks are strong, I fully agreed with her.

* * *

><p><em>"You wrestled a bear?"<em>

_"You say that as if it were a strange thing, Little horse," Zhanna stated as she leaned against the wall as we waited for Verde and her father to end their private discussion._

_"Well, normal people don't wrestle and kill bears, Zhanna," I informed her. She scrunched her nose and titled her head._

_"Then normal people must have boring lives. It's fun to challenge dangerous animals that are much bigger than you. I enjoy hunting them and bringing them down with just this," she held up an impressive looking knife she had been twirling around in her hand was we talked, "and raw strength." I stared at her, not really knowing what to say._

_"You enjoy that?"_

_"It's not like I do it just for the fun," she corrected me. "The first animal I took down, the bear skin I wear now, was taken down to protect my family when I was 14." She gestured to the fur around her hips._

_"You took down a bear when you were 14?" I repeated. She nodded._

_"Although I almost died in the process. My brother was hurt and we were escaping. It attacked us first, so I fought back. Almost died. But, I didn't. Father found us, later, but I will never forget that feeling. The greatest feeling in the world, little horse, is the emotion you feel when you take down the object that had once seemed impossible to overcome; when you complete the impossible challenge," she finished her story with a smile that could easily be mistaken for a grimace._

_"I prefer to live in the moment," she explained, snapping out of her nostalgic gaze and turning her head towards me. "There is always a challenge to overcome, always a challenge presented. It's just that sometimes," she twirled the knife one final time, then sheathed it with skill, "you have to present the next challenge yourself. That is how I live my life, little horse." She looked me in the eyes, and for that moment, I felt as if I were looking into one of the beast Zhanna had faced and killed herself. She smirked, as if she found something amusing while looking into my eyes._

_"Now, I wonder how you will choose to live yours."_

* * *

><p>It took about five minutes before Zhanna became bored out of her mind.<p>

_"That's it,"_ she concluded, standing up and going towards the door, _"I'm gone."_

_"Where're you going?"_ I asked, looking up from my book.

_"To the ring battle,"_ she replied simply. _"Unless there's something else to do in this boring little town."_ she yawned then opened the door. _"See you."_

_"Wait,"_ I stopped her, _"Aren't you supposed to be taking care of me or something? Didn't you say something about staying by my side?"_

_"Yeah, but that was before I got bored."_ And with that she slipped out. I stared at the closed door, then slammed my book shut, annoyed that Zhanna got to go watch the battle and not me. I huffed in annoyance, then a thought entered my head. I was alone in my room. That meant there was no one to stop me from getting up.

Now, I knew for a fact that I wouldn't be able to go watch the battle. But, I could at least try to find Bel. With new determination, I carefully pushed myself up. I was glad to know that there weren't as many black spots as I stood up and I found I had a little more balance than last time. I would never admit it, but eating that food and resting actually helped. It was a challenge getting to the door, but with the support of the wall, I managed to reach. I grinned triumphantly as I opened it, only to fall out into the hallway. After a few moments of wallowing and complete and utter dizziness, I slowly managed to put myself back up.

Now, to find a wheel chair. Hospitals should have those, right?

* * *

><p>Zhanna let out a low whistle as she prepped her elbows on Tsuna's and Gokudera's shoulders after the Cervello had finished explaining the terrain of the battle.<p>

"They did a lot for this battle, yeah?" The two boys immediately jumped away, Tsuna even letting out a small squeak. Yamamoto, Basil and Ryohei immediately retreated back, away from the stranger that had somehow appeared in the middle of their group. She laughed, putting her hands behind her head, then turning to Tsuna. "So," she started. "You are the next Vongola boss?" She went on without Tsuna responding. "You seem pretty small to me." Tsuna was almost frozen in fear looking up at the tall, intimidating woman staring him down. Yet, even with him scared out of his wits, he maintained eye contact, and with that contact, looking into her eyes, he realized that she wasn't dangerous. At least, for now, she wasn't dangerous. She was scary, yes, but not a threat at the moment. It was because of this realization that he had enough courage to speak up.

"W-who are you?" She raised an eyebrow and him, surprised he had the courage to speak after the little scare she had given him. But, instead of answering his question, she looked to her right with an almost amused expression on her face.

_"You can put the gun away, Acrobaleno, I'm here to watch, not to fight,"_ She explained casually to Reborn, who had his gun aimed at her.

_"I didn't expect a visit from the Giegue,"_ Reborn answered, following her lead and speaking in her native tongue, _"especially not from someone high up or as strong as you, Ursa. Why are you here?"_

_"Like I said, to watch." _Meanwhile, Tsuna and the others were staring dumbly at the pair, not following the conversation they were having in Russian.

"What are you doing here, Ursa?" They looked up to see Dino walking towards them. He approached Zhanna, who had a blank, almost bored expression on his face. "I thought you were watching over Cloud?" She shrugged.

"I got bored babysitting," she stated simply. Tsuna blinked, taking in Dino's words.

"Wait, Cloud knows her?! And what does she mean by babysitting?" Tsuna asked. He was aware that Cloud got hurt (somehow. He wasn't even sure if Dino knew how she got hurt. Tsuna was so occupied training that he had almost forgotten about her), and that she was currently resting in the hospital.

"She got grounded," Zhanna explained with an amused tone.

"I don't even know if you can be here," Dino continued, not trying to cover up how he felt about the woman being there.

"Cloud... got grounded?" Tsuna asked, not knowing how to take this information.

"He's right," one of the Cervello said, jumping done to the same level as the group. "Those not directly involved in the Ring Battle are not permitted to watch." Zhanna's earlier smile dropped as she looked towards the Cervello, who stiffened under the intense gaze.

"The Giegue family is allied with the Vongola, or some shit like that," Zhanna spat out, walking up to the Cervello. "So, who are you to stop an ally of the Vongola, anyway?"

"We are the Cervello, directly under the jurisdiction of th-"

"I don't really give a fuck about that," Zhanna interrupted, looking down at the Cervello. "I just want to watch a good fight, maybe see some blood and gore. You really going to stop me form that? Now that I think about it, _can_ you stop me from that?" It took a second before the Cervello retreated back to the second level.

"As an ally of the Vongola, you have the permission you watch the ring battles," she concluded, looking away from Zhanna, with a surprisingly calm voice for how much the encounter had shaken her.

"You have a way with words," Reborn commented sarcastically. Dino simply sighed and shook his head.

"Why does my sister have such dangerous friends?"

"Because she's an idiot," Zhanna supplied dryly, walking back to the group. "But it looks like I might have drawn some attention to myself and you guys." Zhanna jerked her head up, pointing out the group above them.

"The Varia! Xanxus!" Tsuna looked up, surprised that their leader had shown up.

"Pathetic dogs should just disappear. You worms can get rid of the trash for me." And with those words, Xanxus turned and walked away, with Squalo yelling after him.

"Xanxus was serious," Reborn commented, making Tsuna gulp.

"Don't scare them before the match has even started Reborn," Dino scolded while keeping Zhanna in his sights, making sure she doesn't cause any trouble. Seeing that she was occupied with reading something on her phone, he turned to Yamamoto.

Zhanna's eyes narrowed as she scanned the words on her screen. A snarl-like smile slipped onto her face, amused by how much knowledge her friend had. She chuckled, looking back towards the battle field.

_"Cloud sure does have some interesting friends, doesn't she Acrobaleno?" _She asked in Russian.

Reborn couldn't help but agree.

* * *

><p>Belphegor's eyes snapped open, the small sounds of angry muttering and cursing outside of the door waking him up. He waited tensely as the door opened, not bothering to close his eyes, since they were concealed by his bangs anyway. Kicking the door all the way open myself, I rolled my wheel chair in, only managing to hit the bed once or twice.<p>

"I swear I cannot steer this thing," I muttered irritably. "And I know you're awake, Bel."

"What are you doing?" He asked, not bothering to sit up.

"Checking up on my best friend that almost died," I answered. "And you better appreciate it, hubby. Do you know how much trouble it was to get here? Sure, I'm getting better, but I still get headaches, aches, and dizziness and all that fun stuff just from standing."

"Why did you do it?" I was silent after he asked the question. "Why didn't you just let me die?"

"Nice straight jacket," I pointed out, ignoring his question. "Dino sure has great taste, right? By the way where's you tiara? Now's my chance to get a hold o-"

"You're avoiding my question." I shut up the instant he spoke, then slowly pulled my feet up into the wheel chair.

"I'm not avoiding it," I muttered quietly. "I'm just trying to think of an answer." He scoffed, moving his head to where it faced away from me.

"If you have to scramble to think of a reason, then you shouldn't have done it, Cloud."

"It's not that," I corrected him. "It's just that I can't express my reason in words... I couldn't- no, I can't lose someone close to me again." He was silent. I rested my head my knees, the tiredness of it all, of everything; the exhaustion, fatigue, the loss of Mama coming back to me again. Bel let out a loud sigh, startling me.

"You're an idiot," he muttered. I let out a breath of laughter.

"So I've been told. Three times today, actually."

"They'll kill me when they find out I'm alive," Bel pointed out, turning his head back to me.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine in the end," I reassured him.

"I lost," he stated, anger slipping into his voice. "A prince can't lose."

"You underestimated him. That was your downfall," I poked him in the shoulder, using a playful front to calm him. "You all did. You really shouldn't underestimate them just because they're kids."

"You're a kid too, princess." I stuck my tongue out at him childishly.

"_Dìyù a_, I'm a kid! But I'm a kid who trained the kid who kicked your ass," I reminded him.

"You're not helping."

"Look," I began, now aiming to help him, "It was a matter of circumstance. Your arrogance, the time limit, and the terrain all contributed to your loss. If you fight him again, I have no doubt that you would win."

"I'll kill the brat next time I see him," he promised with venom in his voice.

"Not where I was going with that," I said, holding up my hands. "Please do not kill my student." Bel huffed. I had a feeling he was rolling his eyes under his bangs. "Look, the point I'm trying to make is that something as little as this shouldn't be affecting you this much."

"Something as little as this?" He repeated. "This isn't some little thing, princess. This is much bigger than you know."

"I _do_ know, Bel," I reminded him. "You know that." He paused, as if thinking back, then huffed, turning away again. I sighed, putting my legs down and crossing them. I then cupped my face in my hands, propping them up on my legs.

"The prince I know," I recited, "wouldn't be sulking like a child."

"The prince you know also wouldn't lose," he retorted, still facing away. My eye twitched. I let out a loud, frustrated sound.

"That's it!" I exclaimed, throwing my legs down, and ignoring my lightheadedness as I began to slowly make my bumpy way out of the room. "I am done trying to cheer you up! You, you.." I struggled for the words, almost in a rage, "spoiled, rotten brat of a prince! I'm trying to be nice, and a good friend here, but no! You just keep sulking because you lost once. Once! You know how many times I lost? How many times I've been beaten down in training? And do you know what that did for me? It made me stronger. It made me realize my own fuckingmistakes, and do you know what I did after that? I fixed them, unlike you, who's jump moping around in a strait jacket, which isn't really your fault because Dino put you in it, but my point still stands! Well, I'm done trying to make someone who doesn't want to be happy, happy!"

During this my rant, Bel had prepped himself up again, watching as I tried to turn the wheel chair around.

"Wait, princess," he tired. "Cloud, don't go. You can't just leave!"

"And why not?" I hissed, frustrated with my failed escape attempt.

"Because I'm a prince?" he tried. I stared at him and his weak grin blankly.

"Well, your highness," I hissed, still not cooled off, "you can _gun hoe-tze bee dio-se _for all I care." I tried to leave with that, but ending up bumping into a few more things, which seemed to amuse him. He began snickering, a sound I had been waiting for.

"Ushishi, having problems leaving? Perhaps fate won't let you leave my side after all, princess." I rolled my eyes and turned back to him.

"Brilliant," I sarcastically complimented him, "You use that on all the princesses you meet?"

"Nope," he admitted, his usually grin slowly reappearing on his face, "Only you."

"Well, I suppose," I admitted, positioning the wheel chair with more ease than before to where it was facing Bel again, "I can keep you company for a little while longer, since I have nothing else to really do anyways." He snorted in response as I rolled up beside him once more.

"Please," he said with a roll of his eyes (or at least, that's what I thought his eyes were doing under his bangs), "what can be better than hanging out with the prince?" I rolled my eyes as I responded.

"Would you like to see the list?"

* * *

><p>"You going to get him?" Zhanna asked, dropping down to stand beside Dino, who managed not to jump when she did so.<p>

"Do you make a point of trying to scare people?" He asked her dryly. She shrugged, a smile on her face.

"It is fun," She admitted, "I have the face for it, so why not?"

"And how do you even know what I'm doing?" Dino continued, holding a hand up for Romario to put down the gun he had drawn.

"You wait until the others leave," Zhanna starts, bringing her knife out of its sheath and beginning to mindless twirl it between her fingers, "Then you call more of your men, telling them to come with equipment. You also already have more of your men set up around the area, already working on lowering the level of the water. I am smart enough to put things together, _big horse,_" she finished, then added, "That, and your sister told me she thought you would do this." Dino sighed, losing the professional mood had had previously been in.

"She brings trouble even when she's not here," Dino complained, running his hands through his hair. Zhanna let out a bark of laughter.

"Who says that I am trouble? She asked me to help," Zhanna explained, then began to move towards the sealed building. Dino walked briskly after her, trying to match her pace, with Romario trailing behind.

"What do you mean by help? How can you help?" Zhanna ignored him as she threw the door open. She didn't even look down as she stepped through the layer of water that already covered the level they were on, reaching to their ankles. She quickly shrugged off her jacket, throwing it at Dino, who barely managed to catch it. His eyes widened when he realized what she was doing. He roughly grabbed her shoulder, surprised by how much effort her had to put forth to pull her back.

"Are you insane? We already have preparations set up to save the loser and my men are on their way with equipment to handle this so we don't have to deal with tha-"

"The quicker we get him out, the better off he'll be," she countered with her simple-minded logic. "And right now, this is the quickest way to get to him."

"By jumping in the water with a shark?" She nodded, as if she didn't understand how dangerous the situation was. "Okay, okay," Dino shook his head, trying to go about this another way, "Even if you did find Squalo in time and by some miracle the shark isn't around him, what are you going to do if the shark attacks you?" She grinned at him, a grin that threatened to send shivers up Dino's spine.

"Who says I don't want it to attack me?" Dino watched blankly as she prepared to jump into the water.

"Wait! How are you going to take down a shark?" he asked, still trying to comprehend her level of insanity. She smiled again, this time softer, as if remembering the words of another. She twirled her knife one more time and held it up proudly.

"With this," she answered with a feral grin, "and raw strength."

* * *

><p>"So," Bel started as we sat across from each other in his hospital bed, playing cards. I was holding his hand of cards for him, considering he was in a strait jacket, and therefore could not hold them himself, facing the cards towards him so I did not see them. "What is your brilliant plan to sneak out tomorrow night to get to the mist battle?"<p>

"Well," I answered, having already informed of the circumstances of my grounding and my need to get to the next battle, "To get to the battle I have to get past my baby sitter."

"Your brother?" Bel asked, motioning with his head which card to lay down.

"No. I'm pretty sure he's going to be occupied with someone else," I replied, then frowned and let out an audible, sad sigh when Bel won the game. He snickered, a large grin spreading across his face. I stuck my tongue out at him as I reached into my pocket, bringing out a small vile of medicine. "Anyway, while I was looking for a wheel chair to get here earlier, I found this as well. This," I shook the bottle lightly, "is my ticket out." Bel hummed and nodded in approval.

"Hyponic drugs. Nice," he approved. "Ushishi, you're becoming quite devious, princess." I shrugged, placing the vile back into my pocket and beginning to shuffle the cards.

"It's a trait I probably picked up around my illusionist pen pal," I admitted.

"I still think Mammon's going to win," Bel stated. "I'm pretty sure he said he was going to go all out as well." A grin slipped on his face as he snickered once more. "I almost feel sorry for your illusionist friend."

"Pen pal," I corrected him. "He's not my friend. He's more like... my therapist," I nodded, conforming the title for myself as well. "Yeah, he's my therapist." Bel snorted at my wording, then jumped back to our previous subject.

"You never said who your babysitter was," He reminded me.

"Oh, yeah. Hey, do you think that little bottle is enough to knock out a bear?" I asked, beginning to worry that the small amount would not fully work on Zhanna. Bel cocked his head, confused by the sudden question.

"I don't know. Why d-" There was a loud bang as the door was kicked open, an entrance which Zhanna seemed to prefer, and the assassin herself stepped in, clearly wet with large blood stains on her clothes. She saw me immediately as she entered.

_"Hey, do you know if shark meat is good?"_ She asked, as she stepped in. I was relieved that she was uninjured, as far as I could tell from her posture, and that the blood on her clothes didn't seem to be hers. Without waiting for a response for her first question, she was about to continue, when she saw Bel. She scowled. I looked over at Bel to see a similar reaction.

"Why the hell is she here?" Bel asked in an annoyed tone. I looked between the two, sensing the tension in the air. Sitting between them, being one of the only obstacles in the way, I suddenly felt slightly nervous about my position.

_"I'm assuming that you two know each other?"_ I tried, confused by their reactions to each other. Zhanna scoffed, moving from her spot and coming closer to me. Bel's attention remained trained on her, as if she were some wild animal that could attack at any moment, which, truthfully, was a pretty accurate description.

_"We've ran into each other before,"_ Zhanna elaborated, roughly grabbing the wheelchair and moving it closer so she could sit._ "And those encounters were not pretty."_ Bel snickered; his way of agreeing with her.

_"So,"_ I dragged the word out putting the pieces together, _"I take it that you guys don't like each other?"_

"The prince prefers the words loathes," Bel corrected.

_"I prefer the term 'fucking hates his guts and wants to rip them out',"_ Zhanna inputted her choice of words. I looked between the two again, and sighed, not looking forward to their interactions.

_"Well, can't you two just pretend to get along? For my sake?"_ I added, giving both of them my best puppy eyes. For a moment, Bel seemed like he was considering it. Then, Zhanna spoke.

_"Like hell I'm going to pretend to get along with someone I fucking hate,"_ She growled. "_That's bullshit."_ Bel snorted and looked away, his earlier consideration gone.

"A prince can't lower himself to pretending to like someone like her," he agreed.

"Whatever," I sighed, giving up. I returned to shuffling the deck. _"You don't have to get along to play cards with someone,"_ I concluded, then looked up at Zhanna.

_"Want me to deal you in?"_

* * *

><p>"You're an idiot," was Mukuro's very first statement the moment I entered my dreams.<p>

"Four," I concluded the count. "Apparently, calling Cloud an idiot is a popular thing today." Hannah huffed and rolled her eyes.

"You're always an idiot," she muttered.

"Well, thank you inner conscious!" I replied sarcastically. "I was really relying on your moral support. So," I moved on, turning to Mukuro as I crossed my legs in the grass and leaned back on my arms, "You ready for your battle?" He chuckled in response.

"Kufufu, of course I am, little Chiavarone. I have full confidence in my ability," his expression changed to one of doubt after his words, "but, are you sure that the battle will happen exactly as she," he motioned to Hannah, "showed me? I'm not quite sure my dear Chrome would be beaten that easily."

"Mammon shouldn't be underestimated," I warned him. "He's an Acrobaleno after all, so it's no surprise that he over powered Chrome." Mukuro frowned at my words, then hummed thoughtfully.

"Fine, little Chiavarone. I will heed your warning about my opponent. When Chrome falls I will step in and finish him," Mukuro promised with a wicked smirk.

"That's what we want to happen," I agreed. "And don't show off too much, save your energy." He chuckled again.

"What this? Are you telling me what to do?" I sighed and rolled my eyes at his ego.

"Suggesting," I corrected him, "I just making logical suggestions. I swear you and Kyoya are too similar." He scoffed at my comparison.

"I am _nothing_ like the skylark. He is nothing more than a dumb, wild beast."

"That could easily kick your ass," I reminded him.

"Last time we fought, he was unsuccessful in doing that," Mukuro pointed out smugly.

"He stronger now," I reminded him. "You have a problem with underestimating people, you know that?"

"Well, I might just pay him a visit then, just to see how much he's grown," Mukuro mused. Hannah and I blinked slowly, and stared at him. He raised an eyebrow at our reactions.

"Why would you waste your time doing that?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah," I nodded, agreeing with my old self, "Doesn't it take energy to materialize anyway? Why would you waste that energy you could use in battle just to taunt a guy you beat up once?" Mukuro opened his mouth, trying to find the right words. Hannah interrupted him before her could speak.

"You know, you going to see him only shows how much you're obsessed with the guy," she pointed out. I nodded in agreement.

"I am not obsessed with him," Mukuro shot back, trying to remain calm as he argued back.

"For once, I agree with Hannah," I admitted. "If you willing to waste energy materializing just to see one guy you beat one time, then I would call that obsession, or something close to it."

"I am not obsessed with him," Mukuro hissed, losing his cool demeanor. Hannah and I turned to each other, ignoring the now, officially pissed off illusionist.

"He's totally obsessed," I concluded. Hannah nodded confidently.

"Totally."

"Perhaps it's love?"

_"It is _not _love!"_

* * *

><p><em>"Why am I not surprised,"<em> I said through ragged breaths, _"that you wrestled a shark and killed it,"_ I finished, huffing out the words as I completed the last sit up. I clambered up to the bed and threw myself down, disappointed at how exhausted I was with the measly set I just finished. Zhanna sat in a chair beside the bed, getting frustrated with her crossword puzzles.

_"Your brother got rid of the carcass,"_ she said, annoyed with both Dino and the book, _"So I couldn't do anything with the meat. And I can't fully claim the kill all for myself. That guy had already wounded the beast by the time I got there. In the end, I guess he decided that he didn't want to die after all."_

_"Leave it to Squalo to deny death just by instinct,"_ I sighed, my breathing getting back to normal. I flipped my phone open, noting the time. I reminded myself to remain calm and casual as I pushed myself back up and walked over to the coffee machine Dino had ever so graciously placed in my room (saying that even if I'm grounded, he didn't want to deprive me of the thing that gives me life every morning)._ "You want any coffee?"_ I asked Zhanna, already knowing the answer.

_"Sure,"_ she replied nonchalantly. _"I could use something to keep me up. It's getting a little boring in this room after all."_

_"You going to the battle tonight?"_ I asked, keeping my tone nonchalant.

_"No, I have to stay here and make sure you don't go,"_ she replied, sending a stern look my way.

_"Oh, come on, Zhanna!"_ I pleaded, playing along so she wouldn't suspect my plan. _"Can't you just let me go? It's not like I'll be doing anything strenous."_

_"No way,"_ she ended the argument. _"Today, we're building your strength back up. You're not wasting time going to the battle when you could be getting back what you lost."_ I then shut up, turning back to the coffee mugs, giving her the impression that I had given up trying to argue with her. I placed myself in a position where my body covered the mugs, so that Zhanna could not see what I was putting in them, or more specifically hers. I began walking over to her, hoping that the amount I put in her mug was enough to knock her out for a few hours.

_"Just to clarify,"_ I stated, pausing before I gave her the mug. _"That's a definite no on letting me go to the mist battle?"_ She nodded gruffly, taking the mug from my hands herself. Zhanna took a large swig from it as I retreated back to my bed, my own coffee in hand, preparing myself for the already agonizing wait.

The next thirty or so minutes passed by quietly with me in bed, pretending to read and Zhanna occasionally asking the definition of English words. At one point, to ease my anxiety, I began humming absently mindedly. Zhanna looked up, as if recognizing the tune.

_"What are you humming?"_

"Hm?" I remained casual, thankful for the distraction. _"Oh? It's…."_ I trailed off, having to think more on the question to answer it myself. _"A lullaby…"_ I answered slowly. _"A lullaby that my mother used to sing to me when I was little."_

"Ночь пришла."

_"What?"_

_"That's the name of the lullaby,"_ she elaborated. _"The night has come…"_ she trailed off then let out a loud yawn, looking around in confusion with extremely tired eyes. _"My sister used to sing it to me…._ _that's weird…"_ she muttered drowsily, dropping the conversation. _"I'm not usually this tired at this time... unless,"_ she looked over at her now empty coffee mug then back at me. A gargled, sleepy growl emitted from her throat as she attempted to push herself from the chair and towards me. _"You're dead... Cloud..."_ she slumped to the floor, drifting into slumber. I waited a few seconds, making sure she was out. Then I got out of the bed, crouching down to poke her in the cheek.

"Powerful stuff," I mused, seeing that she didn't respond to my poke. I gazed at Zhanna, thinking back on our conversation, making a note to ask her about it later. But for now, there are more important things that reside in the present, as opposed to the past. I went to the door, locking it from the inside just in case Dino decided to pop in and check up on me. I looked at Zhanna, asleep on the floor, trying to decide whether or not to move her to the bed. After figuring it will be too hard of a task, and she was going to kill me when she woke up either way, I decided on simply leaving her there. After grabbing my gloves and one of my guns (just in case), I opened the window carefully, looking down to make sure none of Dino's men were lurking about.

Taking a deep breath, I began my descent down to the now empty street, hoping, praying, that I wouldn't get caught.

* * *

><p>"Ah, Cloud." I stiffened at the voice, slowly turning my head to see the speaker. I relaxed when I saw Reborn and Basil, who was carrying an unconscious Tsuna on his back, approaching me. "I didn't expect to run into you here."<p>

"Yeah," I said, awkwardly rubbing the back of my head, "Just on my way to the mist battle." I chuckled nervously, getting an uneasy feeling from Reborn's evaluating stare.

"We were heading there as well," Basil said happily. I gestured to Tsuna.

"What happened to him?" Basil began to answer but was cut off my Reborn.

"Nothing you need to worry about," he squeaked, jumping onto my shoulder, "But what I'm worried about is you, Cloud."

"Me?" I repeated, faking surprise.

"It seems like you know a lot more than you're supposed to," Reborn elaborated. Basil remained silent as we talked, a suspicious look slipping onto his face. "Although it's not that noticeable unless you think about," Reborn continued. "The way you trained Gokudera was fitting, close to perfect in fact, as if you knew exactly what the battle terrain would be like. Of course, you already had the information about Belphegor, and knew how he fought, but that information was not enough for Gokudera to beat him. You knew what the battle would be like and you forced Gokudera to be able to cope, to become used to what the battle would be like so that fighting in a terrain like that would be almost easy for him."

"There's that," he paused letting his accusations sink in, "and the fact that you know Mukuro Rokudo. Care to explain, Cloud?" I avoided his intense stare as my mind scrambled to think of an answer. Surprisingly enough, one popped up out of nowhere, giving me a plausible answer that had high chances of satisfying the hitman.

"My relation to Mukuro," I began carefully, "Is why I knew about the terrain of the storm battle. He told me," I coolly lied, hoping that a certain illusionist wouldn't be too mad at me for placing the blame on him, "but I don't know how he knew about it. As for how I know him, he contacted me first, and we've had frequent visits ever since," I finished, hoping Reborn would believe my somewhat true tale. My plan was to make Mukuro the bad guy, which wasn't hard since he was already the bad guy once, and to make myself seem like the innocent victim that Mukuro hopes to use in a later scheme. From what Reborn knows of Mukuro, it should be a believable tale for the hitman.

"When you say contact, what do you mean?" Reborn moved on, "How does he contact you?" I held back a sigh of relief. It seemed like Reborn believed me, if only a little bit. It was clear he still had suspicions, but a little belief from him was all I needed. The last thing I needed, however, was Reborn on my case.

"By dreams," I replied truthfully, figuring it wouldn't do any harm to tell him that. "I don't know how he does it though," I trailed off, adding some insecurity in my voice for effect, "It's confusing sometimes, the things he says and the questions he asks." I hugged myself, and looked off, hoping the image of 'confused and slightly scared victim' would come across.

"It's okay, Cloud," Reborn patted my shoulder, "Thanks you for telling me. Although I do wonder how Mukuro knows so much."

"Who knows," I replied, trying to keep my excitement in for actually getting away with my explanation.

"Tenth! Are you okay?" We looked over to see Gokudera rushing up to us, going immediately to Tsuna to see if his beloved boss was okay.

"Tsuna's fine, Gokudera," Reborn assured the right hand man. "He just fainted like the wimp he is." Gokudera, who either didn't hear or ignored the wimp comment because Reborn was the one who said it, was relieved, but insisted the he be the one the carry Tsuna.

"Yo, Cloud!" Yamamoto walked up with Ryohei behind him. He slung an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close, giving me a half hug. "Where've you been? I haven't seen you around for a while! And that one time you came, you ran off. What happened?" I waved him off, giving my best fake smile.

"It was nothing," I assured him. "Just helped a friend in need."

"You did an extreme job of training octopus-head!" Ryohei complimented me, clapping his one good hand on my shoulder (which resulted in a bit of dizziness and nausea on my part). Gokudera's head snapped up from trying to convince Basil, and turned in our direction.

"Who're you calling octopus-head, Lawn-head!" Ryohei ignored him, and continued his conversation.

"Master Colonello said that he trained you as well!" He continued in an excited tone. "I would love to spar with you sometime! We're both students of Colonello after all, so that basically makes up sworn brother and sister." I laughed nervously and shook my head.

"I'm not sure a fight is such a good idea..." I trailed off when I noticed the boxer's wounds, and frowned. My frown deepened when turned to see how much Yamamoto was patched up. Gokudera, I noticed as the group began to head towards the school, was even more injured than I remembered from the manga. One of his arms was in a sling and he had a nasty looking black eye along with various over injuries covering his body. We met eyes and I saw something in them, pride, thankfulness? He made his way over to me, sending an angry look back at Basil, who had apparently won their argument over who got to carry Tsuna.

"He wouldn't let me carry the tenth because I'm injured," he grumbled.

"Well, you shouldn't be carrying him if you're injured," I pointed out. "You okay?"

"Okay? I'm great!" He said with a wide smile on his face. "I made the tenth proud." He held up his hand, showing me the completed ring on it. "And..." he trailed off, a small blush from embarrassment across his cheeks. "I want to thank you for that," he said quietly.

"What?" I said, half not believing he was actually thanking me, and the other half just wanting to hear him say it again.

"I said thanks, okay, woman!" He growled, losing the soft side he had shown me. "Without you," he sighed, rubbing the back of his head with his good arm, "Without you, I would of either lost or been killed by that guy. I took your advice... and ran the moment I had to ring. I'm not proud of that, but I am proud that I won... and that I survived."

"And I'm proud of you for winning, student of mine," I said happily, reaching to pat his head. He growled and swatted at my hand, moving away from me as we entered the school gates. My smile dropped as I watched him go, slowing down to where I was behind the group, not a part of it.

"Yeah, proud," I muttered quietly, trying to convince myself.

* * *

><p>I met Tsuna's confused stare with a raised eyebrow. He had woken up a few minutes ago and after talking to his guardians, Reborn and Basil for a bit, he seemed to have noticed I was there.<p>

"What?"

"Wait... weren't you grounded or something?"

"No, I wasn't."

"But, that woman sai-"

"No, she didn't." I gave him a hard glare, and he gulped, getting the hint and ending the conversation. As Tsuna became distracted once more, I allowed my eyes to wander to the other side of the gym, a place I had been trying to avoid. The empty gaps in the Varia were glaringly obvious to me.

As I scanned over their faces, Xanxus's eyes met mine. I stiffened, wondering what he would do. The boss of the Varia had always been a distant figure to me as a child. He had never directed his anger towards me, but it wasn't like he showed any affection either. Mutual, was a good word to describe him. An understanding had passed between us some time ago. I understood not to bother him and he understood my intention not to. But now, standing on different sides of the battlefield, I wondered if that understanding was still relevant, if that mutuality still existed. He raised an eyebrow, our gazes still locked. I looked away first, not daring to look back, even though I recognized the bored, only slightly amused expression in his eyes that were always there when I looked.

I was snapped out of my gaze by the exclamations Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto were making. I looked over towards the door to see Ken and Chikusa entering. Gokudera stiffened, placing his hands in a position to where he could easily draw his weapons. I approached them as Reborn was calming them down. Yamamoto and Gokudera began arguing as Tsuna began piecing things together. My eyes moved to look past Ken and Chikusa, but I only managed to catch Chikusa's eyes. Vague recognition flashed in them, and he moved to the side. Getting the hint, I moved towards him, watching as Chrome made her entrance (I made a mental note to ask Mukuro later whether he told her to make a dramatic entrance or not. I willing to bet that he did, knowing him).

"I'm guessing that you're Cloud Chiavarone," He asked as I approached. I nodded in response, slightly distracted by the other's reactions to Chrome and their argument over whether she was really Mukuro or not.

"And that's Chrome?" I asked, as if I didn't know already. "She's..." I trailed off as Chrome kissed Tsuna on the cheek, setting off rather humorous reactions from Tsuna, Gokudera and Ken. "Affectionate," I finished. Chikusa simply sighed in reply. I walked up and tapped Chrome lightly on the shoulder before anything happened.

"I'm Cloud," I introduced myself. "You're Chrome right?" She nodded shyly, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Are you the one Mukuro-sama told me about?" I nodded. She bowed slightly as she said, "Please take care of me." I laughed nervously, motioning her stand back up, hoping the others were too distracted by Yamamoto holding Gokudera back to notice our exchange.

"It's fine, it's fine," I told her, waving my hand. "No need for stuff like that. Oh, and you also might want to not do what you just did," I informed her. She tilted her head, confused. "The kiss," I elaborated, you might not want to go around kissing people as a greeting."

"Why not?" she asked innocently.

"Well," I twirled the loose strands of my hair, trying to think of a good answer. "It's just not a thing you normally should do when you first meet someone. Some people don't take too kindly to that type of greeting." She was about to speak again, when we looked over to see Gokudera ready to attack Ken and Chikusa. Chrome stepped forward to calm them.

"Ken, Chikusa, calm down. This isn't for you to decide," she said quietly, then turned to Tsuna. "Boss, is it that I am not worthy of the position as the guardian of the mist? I wish to battle as the guardian of the mist, but... but if boss won't allow it no matter what, then I'll abide by his decision." I watched, trying to not let an amused expression slide onto my face as Tsuna scrambled for an answer, blushing.

"You're asking me to decide just like that?!"

"However, besides Chrome," Reborn reminded, jumping up to Yammoto's shoulder, "there are no others who can battle as the guardian of mist."

"Even Reborn is saying things like that," Gokudera marveled, still against Chrome battling for them. Meanwhile, Tsuna looked like he was deep in thought. I frowned, trying to imagine the pressure on him as boss. Soon, there was a resolved look on his face.

"Then we'll leave it to you."

"What? Is that really all right, tenth?!"

"I don't really know how to put it," Tsuna responded to Gokudera's outburst, "but it seems like it wouldn't work... if it wasn't her." Chrome let out a relieved sigh, and Ken smugly rubbed Tsuna's decision in an angry Gokudera's face. I was about to move to calm my student, but Colonello's entrance distracted me.

I smiled as he flew in and watched as he talked to Reborn about Mammon. After their conversation, he sent a nod in my direction and I nodded back, changing my position to where he could clearly see I was still wearing the weights. He grinned in approval.

"Oh yeah, where's Dino?" Tsuna turned to me. "Is he not coming today..?"

"That's right, he isn't here yet," Yamamoto commented, looking over at me as well. I opened my mouth to answer, but Reborn beat me to it.

"Some urgent business came up last night and he went to meet with an old friend." I hummed and nodded in agreement.

"Yep," I said, popping the 'p'. "Urgent business."

"Let's make a huddle!" Ryohei suggested. Yamamoto agreed, pulling me in as well as they prepared their huddle.

"That's all right," Chrome dismissed them. "I don't need that kind of thing. I'm going." I sighed in relief, glad that she didn't promote the embarrassing team huddle. I listen impatiently as the Cervello explained the terrain and rules, and Reborn then explained the role of the mist guardian. Truthfully, I zoned out for most of it, only really paying attention when the audience arena lowered to the ground, trapping up inside with the infrared-triggered lasers. For once, I was excited to see this illusion battle would be interesting, and I was kind of sick and tired of only seeing Mukuro's illusions.

"The battle of mist: Mammon vs. Chrome Dokuro. Begin the battle!"

I blinked, then rubbed my eyes, watching as the battle between the two illusionists started. Although, something was missing from the picture. I saw the illusionists, facing each other in battle.

The only problem was that I didn't see the illusions they were fighting with.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Hope you don't mind Zhanna, but she is going to become somewhat of an important character in future arcs (when I say that, I am referring to the Future arcs and arcs beyond the future arc, just to clear confusion). She's one of Cloud's most influential connections and Cloud is smart enough to fully use that along with her other connections. Also, I think it's good to give the MC a close friend outside the cast.**

**I left you with another, sort of cliff hanger. I don't really plan it, it just happens and I think, "hey, that's a good place to stop." So, yeah. next chapter will go more into depth on how illusions affect Cloud and stuff. Also, next chapter will, you know, be the mist battle and possibly the end of the Varia arc. I sure did shove a lot of it into this chapter though.**

**And in other news, more Bel and Cloud interactions. I realize while writing this, I am basically teasing the shippers. For that I am either sorry, not sorry or somewhat sorry; I will check back with you later when I decide which kind of sorry I am. But do not be discourage, my dear readers! Feel free to ship Cloud and Bel all you want, or for that matter, ship Cloud with whoever you to, for there may or may not be chances of them ending up together. Once again, I will check back with you later on that, after I have decided.**

**And a big thanks to the lovely Blue Rubix-Cube for letting me use her version of Cloud as the cover for this story! It's so cute, I just want to reach out and hug it. Sorry for making this Author's note so long, but I haven't talked to you guys in a while and it seems like there is a lot I want to say. Whoops.**

**Favorite Disney movie**

Frozen. No competition. In fact, I just finished making Anna and Elsa figurines for a friend's birthday, I now have the art book and I also have a painting of Elsa I made after seeing the movie.

But, my favorite older Disney movie would probably be Alice in Wonderland.

And so my readers, after returning after the long break with a long, and possibly the longest chapter so far, I leave you with this;

Goodnight, readers. Goodnight.

**-Klu**

**Edit: I'm going to change my favorite Disney movie. Although Frozen is up there are the list, I just really like the movie. The only emotional attachment I have to it is really just to the characters (namely Elsa and Anna). Now, for my favorite whole movie experience, I'd have to say The Princess and The Frog or Meet the Robinsons. I just think those are really great movies all together, character-wise and from a Narrative perspective. Wreck-it-Ralph is also on up there, along with Big Hero Six.**

**Gah. Bel and Cloud are adorable. That is all. **


	29. Past the Breaking Point

**Chapter 29: Past the Breaking Point **

**I don't own KHR, among a lot of other things that I will not name, since the people that "own" those things may figure out I have them. Shhhhh.**

* * *

><p><strong> "Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is are we living a life that is worth harm?"<strong>

**-Cecil (Welcome to Night Vale)**

* * *

><p>I rubbed my eyes again, blinking hard. I tilted my head, completely and totally confused. I looked over to ask if anything is happening yet, but was surprised to see everyone else freaking out, falling to the ground and flailing. I glanced over at the Varia's side, but only saw Levi reacting like Tsuna and the others. Mammon drew my attention back to the actual battle by jumping on a zig-zag pattern towards... a basketball cart? A toilet paper looking stream shock out at the cart, wrapping around it. Meanwhile, Chrome calmly walked around to where she was behind Mammon. I noticed the others had become more grounded, and I realized that Chrome's first illusion had been broken.<p>

"Much too weak," Mammon commented dryly. "You won't even make a good side show." Chrome, behind him, smiled softly.

"Who are you talking to?" She asked, giving away her location. "Over here."

"The girl turned into a bunch of basketballs?"

"How... how did that happen?" I decided to stay quiet for the moment, still trying to figure out for myself why I wasn't seeing the illusions.

"It's an illusion," Reborn answered.

"Illusion?!" Tsuna parroted.

"Both creating illusions without yielding a step, deceiving each other without stopping for a breath. This kind of impressive battle is something you won't get to see very often," Reborn informed them. I huffed and turned away as Tsuna began making connections to Mukuro once again. A pouty look slipped onto my face.

"Impressive, huh?" I muttered irritably. "It's definitely something I'm not getting to see." Yamamoto looked over, noticing my expression. He opened his mouth to question me, but we were both distracted by the clinking of chains as they fell to the ground. I looked up, hopeful that maybe it was an illusion as Mammon's frog shed its darker skin, breaking out into a snake-looking frog biting its own tale. That hope only soared as Mammon began to float, emitting light from his pacifier. My hope was crushed as I looked down to see Reborn and Colonello's pacifier's glowing as well, reminding me that this wasn't an illusion, and that I had seen this before.

"That curled up frog and indigo pacifier... so he's alive, hey!" Colonello concluded. Reborn nodded in agreement.

"As I thought," the Sun Arcobaleno said confidently, as if he knew all along (which he probably did, but I'm not admitting that, even to myself), "his true identity is the Acrobaleno, Viper." I sighed in defeat, quickly becoming bored with the battle. This revelation was nothing new to me, and I had already seen Mammon float once or twice in my childhood. Therefore, this battle was making me lose interest.

"What!? He... he's floating! He's an Acrobaleno?!" On the other hand, Tsuna not handling all this information being thrown at him was quite amusing to watch.

"Yeah," Colonello nodded, diving into an explanation. "He is also part of the group of the strongest babies, the Arcobaleno."

"Viper of the indigo pacifier," Reborn continued. "It's said that he's an illusionist and the only one among the Arcobaleno who possesses physic abilities."

"Psychic..?" Gokudera inputted, his interest piqued. "You mean ESP?! That kind of occult?"

"I had heard that he was missing in action," Colonello continued, completely ignoring my student, "but I didn't think he was still alive. Why didn't the pacifiers light up until now?" He asked, looking down at his own.

"I'm not sure, but it seems to have something to do with that chain-like implement. It seems to have sealed the pacifier's powers," Reborn guessed correctly.

"Foolish babies like you wouldn't understand," Mammon taunted form above us. "It is a by-product of research. Unlike you, I am never negligent of the effort to lift the curse." Reborn and Colonello tensed, causing to Tsuna to voice his confusion.

"...what is he talking about?"

"This isn't good. The average illusionist can't stand up to that stupid baby, hey!" Colonello turned to Reborn with a hard look.

"Don't be so quick to decide that, Colonello," Reborn warned. "Dokuro is no ordinary illusionist."

"No matter who you are," Chrome declared, bracing her trident, "I won't lose." I sniffed and absentmindedly rubbed my nose as Chrome lunged forward again, and apparently, according to what Mammon was saying, eventually creating the illusion of a snake around the Acrobaleno.

"Figures, I would be looking forward to the battle and this would happen," I sighed, putting my hands behind my head. Yamamoto looked over at me.

"What do you mean, Cloud?" I hummed, trying to find a good way to say this.

"Well," I started as Tsuna yelled something about a state of beasts. "I kind of can't see the illusions they're using."

"Really? That's really wei- watch out!" Yamamoto then tried to reach out for me, then winced and stepped back. I raised an eyebrow at his actions.

"What?"

"You... you're not burning?" I looked down at my body, then back up at him.

"I don't think so," I answered slowly.

"Well…" He started, rubbing the back of his head. "You're kind of standing half way in a column of flames."

"Am I?" I mused to myself, not actually amused. Yamamoto was drawn back to the fight, then began hugging his shoulders, as if he were cold. I noticed the others had similar body language, even Reborn and Colonello.

"The art of illusion seizes control of the person's perception- that is to say, it infiltrates the brain that governs the five sense," Mammon explained, hovering above Chrome. "The stronger the illusionist's abilities, the more complete the infiltration. Their illusion's rate of success is also heightened, and its hold over reality stronger. Thus, in the illusionist's case, if their illusion is successfully countered with illusion it means that control of their own perception will be completely shattered."

According to the other's reactions, something was happening to Chrome, but I couldn't see it thanks to my block with illusions. It didn't matter anyway, since I has thrown deep into thought by Mammon's explanation.

He said that illusionists infiltrate the mind, but what if they couldn't get into the mind they wanted to infiltrate? Mukuro himself had trouble entering my mind, and that was breaking into it, not just casting an illusion. An improper fit, he had called it. Mammon himself had told me years ago that my mind rejected anything that tried to get in naturally. Then, if he could get in years ago, even if he had to use a little bit of force to, then why couldn't I see his illusions now? Can I see any illusions at all? The only conclusion I could come up with, I decided as I watched Chrome fall, wincing as she hit the ground, was that my otherworldly mind simply rejected the infiltration.

"This is bad," Colonello noted, drawing my attention back to the battle.

"So it is," Reborn agreed with him. I frowned as Mammon floated closer to Chrome, who was clutching her trident tightly.

"It seems as though that weapon is fairly important to you," he noticed. Chrome's eyes widened in fear, seeing where he opponent was heading.

"Don't, don't!" she pleaded desperately as Mammon's pacifier glowed. The trident then shattered. Ken and Chikusa scowled behind me. Chrome's reaction was immediate as she began coughing up blood, falling down to the floor, her stomach clearly collapsed. I tensed, stopping myself from running out, silently telling myself that Mukuro would be, he would come soon and not make her suffer any longer.

There was that little doubt of fear in the back of my head that was worried that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance of this going wrong, or that he wouldn't come. There was a part of me that didn't want to trust Mukuro (and it had a good reason not to). I silenced that voice when I saw Chrome muttering his name, over and over again. I then did something that might be considered stupid.

I trusted Mukuro. I trusted him to be here for Chrome, because from what I've seen, from the promises he made me make, I knew he cared about her. Although, I doubt he would ever outwardly admit it.

"Mukurp...sama," Chrome breathed out, tears in her eyes. "I wanted to help you..."

There was a sudden pulse, as if all the lights in the room had gone out for a millisecond. I looked at the others, but the only change I saw was in Tsuna's eyes.

**_"You did well, my cute little chrome."_**Tsuna's eyes widened, recognizing the voice. A strange, unnatural, yet familiar, feeling washed over me.

**_"You rest for a little while."_**My eyes cut back to Chrome and I was surprised to see a white, smoky mist billowing out from her body.

"You've got to be kidding me," I muttered, slowly sinking in denial.

"The girl is being wrapped up in fog!" Ryohei shouted, confirming that I was not the only one seeing this.

"Ah, this? Marshaling the last of one's strength to conceal their own unsightly corpse. It's a common behavioral pattern of female illusionist," Mammon brushed the tense atmosphere off. I looked over to see Tsuna not handling Mukuro's presence as mildly as I was, clutching his head in agony. I felt pity towards him, remembering the full week I suffered through when Mukuro first entered my head.

"...He's coming! It's him... He's coming!" The others looked down at Tsuna in surprise, sharing worried glances between each other. "ROKUDO MUKURO IS! MUKURO IS COMING!" Reborn's eyes moved away from Tsuna and met mine. I stiffened under his gaze but gestured back to the battle, as the mist swirled violently around Chrome's body. Everyone stiffened, clearly confused, as Mukuro's trademark laughter echoed throughout the gym.

"Muu? A man's voice...?" Mammon muttered. I forced my face to remain neutral, trying to stop two things happening: me calling Mukuro out on how dramatic he was being with his entrance, and not screaming in frustration over the fact that the only illusions I can see are Mukuro's. I sighed in defeat, rubbing my temples.

"I hate my life," I muttered in defeat. Luckily, everyone else was distracted by Mukuro knocking Mammon back by hitting his trident on the ground to see or hear my grumblings.

"Kufufufu... you're showing off quite a bit, aren't you? For mafia style." I bit my bottom lip, stopping myself from pointing out the irony of his statement.

"Who...?"

"Who's that..?" I looked over at Basil and Ryohei, the only ones on our side who hasn't met Mukuro before

"Rokudo Mukuro...!" Gokudera confirmed. I noted the hatred in his eyes. "There's no mistake."

"Mukuro... he's alive," Tsuna breathed out, looking rather pale. Yamamoto glanced over at me, noting my lack of surprise.

"You know him, Cloud?" He asked in almost a hushed tone.

"You could say that," I admitted, my answer almost coming out as an exasperated sigh.

"It's been a while," Mukuro commented idly, as if he weren't in the middle of a battle. "I've come back… form the other side of the cycle." This time, I did roll my eyes at his over-dramatic-ness. He seemed to see this, and sent a smirk my way. I huffed, glaring at him until he turned back to Mammon.

"Rokudo Mukuro..." Mammon sputtered as he pushed himself up, "I was wondering where I'd heard that name before. Now, I remember." At this point, he was floating again. "About a month ago someone attempted an escape from the Vindice prison. The person's name was Rokudo Mukuro."

"What!"

"He... He broke out again?!" I raised an eyebrow at Tsuna's exclamation.

"You're surprised?" I asked him. Tsuna struggled for an answer, then scratched the back of his head.

"Well, no, but... wait, how do you know him?" I blinked, then glanced back at the fight.

"Look, they're talking," I pointed out.

"Huh?" Tsuna looked back at the fight. I stared at him. Huh. That actually worked. If only it were that easy to distract Reborn.

"I heard that he was thrown back into a prison even more difficult to escape from," Mammon continued.

"Kufufu. The information net of the Vongola's elite special assassination squad Varia isn't that well informed, after all," Mukuro retorted casually. "I am here, aren't I?"

"What a troublesome guy. All right. Let's clear things up. You are merely an illusion created by that girl, right?" At this point, judging from the others reactions, I assumed Mammon created the illusion of a blizzard. However, as the others were freezing I was pondering over Mukuro.

He was... different somehow. It was strange, really. His presence felt the same, but his actions felt reserved, more difficult to read than the open Mukuro I was used to dealing with in my dreams. Yet, at the same time, even though it felt like he was difficult to read, I felt like I noticed more things than usually. I could clearly distinguish his attitude, his actions, his mood. So, even though he felt more reserved, it was like I was a child reading a difficult book; the words might be more advanced, but I could still understand them or at least guess what they meant.

Mukuro seemed amused by Mammon's illusion more than anything. He stood completely still as Mammon approached him, waiting for the opportune moment to counter attack. I was taken aback by the column of fire that shot up, not used to seeing illusions. The next thing I knew, Mammon was covered in lotus vines and blooming flowers. Mukuro began chuckling again, as more lotus flowers bloomed around the small illusionist.

"Just who is an illusion?" He taunted.

"What's this… power..! Th-the pain..." Mammon struggled as more vines encased him. I took a sharp intake of breath, the sheer power Mukuro possesses just now hitting me. It was hard to believe that this was a man I willingly let into my mind. It was even harder to believe that a man this powerful was almost intimidated by the fragility of my mind.

"Even that Viper is completely overwhelmed..." Colonello admitted.

"That is Tsuna's mist guardian, Rokudo Mukuro," Reborn explained with a smirk.

"He's the real thing after all..." Gokudera concluded. "But, if that's the case, what happened to that girl?"

"You cannot consider Chrome and Mukuro as separate beings," Reborn explained. "Because there is Chrome, Mukuro can exist, because there is Mukuro, Chrome can live." There was a moment of stunned silence, before Tsuna finally broke it.

"No... I don't get it."

"That's all I can explain for now," Reborn shrugged it off, mysteriously. I managed to keep my scoff down.

"Come on... what's the matter Arcobaleno?" Mukuro jeered at Mammon as he continued to struggle. "If you keep taking your time, I'm going to wrap things up, you know."

"Muu!" Mammon burst out of the vines, floating higher into the air. "Don't get cocky!" It was the weirdest thing, only seeing one side of the illusions used in the battle. Mukuro smirked, amused as always, as a flame appeared over his right eye.

"So weak," he commented, slicing the air in front of him with his trident as Mammon quickly floated away.

"That flame in his eye! It's the hand-combat skill, the state of Shura!" And there was Tsuna with his brilliant commentary.

"An illusionist who resorts to hand-combat is heresy!" Mammon yelled out, clearly starting to feel the pressure of the battle, and seeing how dangerous Mukuro really was. "I denounce you and your reincarnation cycle rubbish!"

"Oh?" The Acrobaleno's speech only seemed to amuse Mukuro even more.

"Humans will repeat the same life many time in infinite cycles. That's why I must keep hoarding my money!" The others began flailing frantically again, falling on the floor and squirming.

"That viper is using his full strength." I looked up to see Colonello's hawk carrying both the soldier baby and Reborn.

"He really has no other choice," Reborn noted.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Acrobaleno, but I have met living proof that human lives do not repeat," Mukuro informed him, sending a glance in my direction that I really hope nobody (namely, Reborn) saw. "However, it is quite interesting to see such a greedy Acrobaleno. But, when it comes to greed..." Mukuro bared his trident, readying his next illusion. "I won't lose either."

I let out a small gasp of surprise when columns of fire, decorated with lotus blooms and vines burst to life around us. I couldn't help but admit that his illusions were beautiful, gorgeous even. Of course, that is something I will never tell Mukuro. However, it seemed like the others were not admiring the illusions like I was seeing that most of them were holding their heads in agony thanks to the nausea and pain.

"They're starting to get corrupted by the illusion," Colonello noted.

"Yeah. Because these illusions act on the mind directly, and they've been continuously affected since the battle began. Except for you, Cloud." I gave him a nervous smile. "It seems like you're not effected at all. I wonder why that is..." I shrugged.

"Who knows?" was my lame response. "Ah, look!" I pointed back to the battle, and surprisingly enough, both of them looked, watching as Mukruo made his way through the columns. I assumed Mammon had just frozen them (if my memory of the original plot was correct) so it was pure luck that I had pointed to the battle at that moment.

"Uuuaaa... my head..!" I glanced over, then went over to Tsuna concerned by the amount of pain he was expressing. I froze before I could reach him, staggering for a moment as images flickered in front of my eyes.

In one moment, I felt as if I was underwater, unable to breathe. In the next I heard the voice of Mukuro, telling someone to split up. Then, a bone chilling voice. I realized, between these flickers and images, that I was seeing what Tsuna was, although not as strongly as him. I swayed again, putting my hand to my face, feeling sharp stabs of pain. This was something I wasn't supposed to see, I realized as I saw flickerings of Mukuro's conversation with Iemitsu. Lastly, the strongest image yet, was Mukuro underwater, in his prison cell. For one moment I felt strong empathy for him. I then realized that it was Tsuna's empathy I was feeling.

"Cloud, are you okay?" Startled, I looked over to see Yamamoto shaking my shoulder.

"Yeah," I nodded my head, dismissing the shaky feeling I had. "I'm fine." I looked back over at the battle in an attempt to distract myself. I watched as lotus vines burst to life from around Mukuro, apparently dispelling Mammon's illusion he had cast to trap Mukuro earlier (according to Yamamoto, who now believed it to be his job to tell me what was going on since he still thought I couldn't see any illusions).

"Descent into Hell, then return again." There was a moment, where we all just stood there dumbly staring at the two ring halves between Mukuro's fingers. Levi broke that silence.

"Impossible! That Mammon...!"

"He won..." Basil finished.

"Completely over powered," Ryohei added. Ken smugly chuckled behind us. I waited, still tensed, knowing it wasn't over yet. Mukuro waited as well, knowing the exact same thing. Looking past Mukuro, I noticed Mammon pushing himself up off the ground, panting. I guessed that he was covering himself with an illusion since I seemed to be the only one noticing him.

"Wait!" Mammon gasped in between his words. I assumed his illusion was dispelled, because Mukuro and the others were looking at him as well. "I was just playing with you. Don't get so cocky! I have yet to show you the full extent of my powers!"

"You know this very well, don't you?" I looked up to see Mukuro standing on the side of the wall, staring smugly down at Mammon. "What it means when your illusionary powers are countered by another's. It means," he said as Mammon's own pet wrapped around his neck, strangling him. "that you have completely lost control over your own perceptions."

"Gyah! Stop! Fantasma!"

"Come, shall I show you what this thing we call power really is? Shall we?" Mukuro jaunted as the floor caved in where Mammon was. My arms flailed as the ground beneath us fell. Yamamtoto managed to grab a hold of me and Tsuna as we fell.

"We're falling!"

"Dammit, Mukuro! Stop being such a _tā mā de_ show off!" I muttered angrily as I clung closer to Yamamoto, who was trying to calm Tsuna down.

"Kuhahah! How does it feel like? Arcobaleno! This is my world!" Mukuro dove downwards until he completely lost shape, then the shape that used to be Mukuro was forced into Mammon's mouth, making him grow larger inside until he looked like he was about to burst.

"Stop it!" He pleaded. "I'm going to die! I'm going to die!"

"The reason you lost," Mukuro's voice echoed in my ears, sending a cold shiver down my spine, "was because you had me as your opponent." And with that, Mammon literally burst. All at once, the room swirled back into place, revealing the gymnasium, completely unscathed from the battle. Mukuro was kneeling in the center and holding out the whole ring of the mist to the Cervello.

"Is this acceptable?" The Cervello shared glances, then nodded.

"The mist ring now belongs to Chrome Dokuro. With that, the winner of this battle is Chrome Dokuro," the Cervello concluded.

"Eh, wait!" Tsuna stepped forward, catching Mukuro's attention. "How could you... you didn't have to go that far..."

"Even now, you're still showing such sympathy for the enemy. Just how naive can you get, Sawada Tsunayoshi?" Mukuro sighed and shook his head. "There's no need to worry... I should say. That baby managed to escape. From the start, he had every intention of reserving enough energy to escape. He's a shrewd, that Acrobaleno."

"Gola Mosca, after the contest battles are over, eliminate Mammon," Xanxus ordered, reminding us, or at least me, that he was watching the whole time.

"My, my," I resisted the urge to face palm as Mukuro began to taunt Xanxus, something I told him (tried to tell him) not to do, "You really are the dark side of the mafia, aren't you Xanxus? Even I would feel awed at this terrifying scheme you're thought up." The tension between them was almost too much. Luckily, Mukuro turned away and began walking back to us. "But, I have no intention of poking my nose into your business, because I am not such a nice human being. Just one thing though... the other candidate for successor, though smaller and weaker than you, is not really someone you should trifle with, for your own good."

"I swear to god, he just flipped his hair as he turned away," I muttered narrowing my eyes.

"What?" Yamamoto looked over at me.

"Nothing," I replied quickly, watching as Chikusa and Ken happily greeted their leader.

"You bastard! How dare you show your face here!" Yamamoto stepped forward as Gokudera readied himself to fight. I stayed were I was, calmly looking at my student with a tired expression.

"It's good to be so vigilant," Mukuro said as he neared, "but, I have no intentions of colluding with the mafia either. The only reason I have become your mist guardian is to set myself in a better position to possess your body, Sawada Tsunayoshi." He turned to me, as Tsuna managed to stop Gokuder from full out lunging at the illusionist. "So, little Chiavarone, what did you think of my display, hm? It was your fist time seeing my illusions, wasn't it?" The others went silence when they connected two and two, realizing that Mukuro was acknowledging me.

"Tacky," I answered. I managed to catch the smallest trace of an eye twitch. "And a little bit unoriginal. Too flashy. You should conserve more energy instead of wasting it to show off." He chuckled, brushing my comments off.

"And why should I care about you opinion?" He looked down on me, then seemed to notice something. "Oh, you're shorter here." I froze as he pinched my cheek. "It's kind of cute, you know?"

"Let," I breathed out, "go." He chuckled, but released my cheek.

"Oh? Did I make you mad, little Chiavarone?" He ended the question with a yawn. "A little tired now... remember to look after... her..." he said the last part quietly, so only I could hear. The next thing I knew, he was falling into me. I blinked and it was Chrome who I had to catch.

"T-that pineapple bastard..." I huffed and laid Chrome on the ground, checking to make sure she wasn't injured.

"He's turned into a girl again! What's going on?"

"He expended his power to transform into reality," Reborn explained to Tsuna. "He probably won't be able to come over again for a while..." as he trailed off his gaze lingered back to me. I pretend not to notice this, as Tsuna looked towards me.

"What about the girl's internal organs?"

"She's fine now," I answered when I realized that he was waiting for me to answer him.

"It's thanks to Mukuro's powerful illusions," Reborn added as he jumped on my shoulder.

"She's asleep," Tsuna said, relieved.

"What exactly is your relationship with Mukuro, Cloud?" Reborn bluntly asked me. I tried not to show that I was scrambling for an answer.

"I don't really know myself," I admitted truthfully.

"What are his motives exactly? Do you know that?"

"I don't know much about that either, but it seems like he wants to help you guys more than he lets on."

"Hm? Is that so..." Reborn trailed off with a thoughtful look. "It seems like he has placed Chrome in your care, right, Cloud?"

"You heard that, huh?" He smirked.

"You should know by now," he chided, "Nothing gets past me."

"We will continue with the next contest battle," the Cervello announced, catching our attention.

"Wait! It's four to two now," Gokudera argued, stepping forward and holding up the hand that proudly displayed his ring, "We have more rings on our side! Doesn't this mean that we win?"

"We shall still continue the battles until the rightful guardians are chosen. These are the ninths orders," the Cervello restated, a bit nervously. Gokudera scowled at them and Reborn frowned from my shoulder, seeing that something wasn't right, but he kept quiet, realizing that arguing would get him nowhere. I narrowed my eyes. That's right, Xanxus is really in charge, so even if we were winning, he still needs to go through with his plan. He wouldn't just let us win just because we have more rings. So, even in an unlikely scenario like this, he would still have a back up to make sure he reaches his ultimate goal. They even pulled 'the boss's orders' card to pull these ring battles out longer.

"Tomorrow will be the battle between the Cloud guardians."

"It's Hibari's turn," Gokudera realized.

"Yes!" Yamamoto smiled, having faith in their school prefect.

"Oi, Xanxus," Reborn jumped off my shoulder and onto the ground. "You've already lost. Even if you have the sky ring, the ring count is already in our favor. Tsuna's side has already won, yet they're still continuing. This is simply dragging out until you officially lose."

"The ninth's orders stated that each battle deter-" The Cervello that stepped forward was interrupted by Xanxus.

"You act like it's my fault that they're continuing," he sneered, glaring down at Reborn. "It's the old man's orders, right? If you're really that worried I'll put everything on Mosca's fight. After all, it's not like you trash are in danger of losing anyway, right?" There was a moment as we took his words in.

"Fine. If it's the Ninth's orders," Reborn concluded, then turned to walk out. "Let's go back home."

"But, Reborn!"

"Let's go, Tsuna," Reborn repeated, grabbing Tsuna by the arm and actually dragging him out. I picked Chrome back up and followed Basil, Colonello and Ryohei, with Gokudera and Yamamoto falling into step behind me. Reborn stopped once we were a little ways away from the school.

"I don't like this," Reborn said. "Xanxus is planning something."

"Shouldn't we have won after this?" Ryohei pointed out. "Octopus-head, Yamamoto, that illusion guy and I have already won! Doesn't that mean we win?"

"It should," Reborn agreed, "but the Cervello are continuing, which is strange. I have a feeling that it's part of Xanxus's scheme."

"Well, it doesn't matter anyway, right?" Yamamoto said, bringing a little cheerfulness to the group, "Hibari's going to win tomorrow anyway!" There were nods all around.

"Yeah," Gokudera agreed, "There's no way that guy would lose."

"Then we'll be back tomorrow to finish this once and for all," Reborn concluded. "Are you taking Chrome back to the hospital, Cloud?" He asked as the others dispersed.

"Yeah," I nodded, "Just to make sure she's okay."

"Good, good," Reborn nodded. "Tsuna, go with her."

"What?!"

"I've got to check up on something. You accompany Cloud to the hospital."

"Why do I have to? She can take care of herself, right?"

"A true gentleman and Mafia boss should walk girls back home when it's dark," Reborn explained.

"But I don't want to be a mafia bos-GAH!" Tsuna was then very gracefully kicked by Reborn as I started walking off. I giggled, re-positioning Chrome a bit.

"Wow, you're such a gentleman for walking me back," I teased as Tsuna grumbled quiet curses towards Reborn.

"S-shut up, Cloud! Ah! Now I'm all worried about this battle! I thought that we won for a while, then Reborn had to go and say that!"

"It's fine, Tsuna," I tried reassuring him. "Everything will be fine in the end."

"_You're dead, Little horse."_

"... at least, it will be for you." We both tensed as Zhanna jumped down from the wall, twirling her knife as she rose in front of us. Tsuna let out the smallest sliver of a whimper, feeling the intensity of Zhanna's rage.

_"Hey, Zhanna!"_ I greeted cheerfully. _"Did you have a nice nap?"_ I quickly regretted my words as I moved my head to the side, dodging the knife that embedded itself into the telephone pole just behind me. I gulped as Zhanna stalked forward. My mind raced for a reason for her to stop. I looked down at the unconscious Chrome in my arms.

_"Wait, wait! You can't hurt me right now! I'm carrying an unconscious person! It's a rule, it's a thing!"_ I pleaded as I backed away from Zhanna. She paused, hesitation in her eyes. Luckily for me, that little bit of hesitation is all I needed.

_"That's not thing,"_ she rebuked.

_"Yes, it is! It totally is!"_ She gave me a disbelieving look. "_Okay, fine, it might not be a thing, but,"_ I stopped her before she could start again, _"at least let me get her back to the hospital, then you can go at it. Just let me take care of her first."_ It took a moment for her to decided, then she walked forward. I froze as her hand shot out towards me, but she was only retrieving the knife she had thrown earlier.

_"Fine. We'll do it your way, little horse,"_ Zhanna huffed, then turned to walk back towards the hospital. Tsuna breathed out a sigh of relief beside me, reminding me that he was there. I noticed he looked rather pale.

"W-what... what did you do?" Tsuna asked. Even though he didn't understand our conversation, it seems he got the point that Zhanna wanted to kill me.

"Oh, I just drugged her so I could sneak out to see the battle," I casually explained as I started walking as well. He stared at me.

"You... drugged her?" He repeated.

"Yep," I said, pooping the 'p' as usual. "Oh, and remember not to let Dino know I snuck out," I reminded him. "I'm kind of supposed to be grounded." Tsuna continued to stare at me, as if he was still trying to comprehend my words.

"... you're insane," he concluded after a while. I gave him a cheeky smile.

"You know it, Tuna-fish!"

"Don't call me that!"

* * *

><p>"Alright," I concluded after I was done making sure Chrome was completely safe. "Everything seems fine." I smiled softly as I turned to face Tsuna, turning my back on Zhanna. "Thanks for accompanying us here, Tsuna. It was very sweet of you to do that, even if Reborn forced you to. Now, if you'll excuse me, I do believe I am in danger of being pulverized by a Russian assassin." I then promptly ducked, just as Zhanna fist came flying in, luckily just stopping about an inch in front of Tsuna's face. I rolled sideways and sprinted out the door as quickly as possible, Zhanna right on my tail. Luckily, although strong, Zhanna wasn't a fast runner. Even though I felt like I was dying at the moment, I could outrun her.<p>

The only question is, how long I could outrun her. I squeaked as I dove to the side, barely dodging a knife she had thrown at me. I scrambled around the next corner, hoping that she would give up at some point.

_"You're dead, Cloud!"_

Sadly, that was a lost hope.

* * *

><p>"He really isn't saying anything," Dino sighed as he walked through the lobby of the hospital. "He's really taking this to the grave, huh, Romario?"<p>

"It seems so, boss. Why don't you let the princess talk to him?" Dino shook his head.

"I doubt he would say anything to her, and," his face deadpanned, "I don't want her to know where he is, since she'll just talk to him even more. She already found out where Belphegor was. She has enough dangerous friends as it is, including Ursa. I don't even want to know how she met that monster. Anyways, I really don't wa-"

"Dino, move!" Instantly alert, Dino side stepped Cloud as she came barreling through the lobby, breathing hard and looking exhausted. By the time Dino had gathered his wits, he saw she was headed for the door.

"Cloud, you don't you dare walk out that door!" Dino scolded her, using what his sister liked to call his 'boss' voice. "You're grounded, remember?" The girl managed to turn just before she exited the door, sending a glare back at her brother. Dino was about to speak again, but was silenced by the knife that flew right past his face and land right beside his sister's.

"How," Cloud breathed out, "many knives do you even have!?" She then squeaked as two more came flying at her. Dino and Romario could only watch in numb shock as Cloud raced down another hallway, just in time before Zhanna could completely enter the hallway. The Russian assassin laughed in amusement, bringing two more knives, twirling them as she prepared to start her hunt again. She seemed to notice the two men and gave them a nod of acknowledgment before starting after her prey. A moment of stunned silence passed between the boss and right hand man before Dino said anything.

"Do you think," he asked Romario, "that I just sealed her fate by making her stay in the building?" Romario shrugged, then began making his way to Belphegor's hospital room once again.

"She has to learn that there are consequences somehow, boss."

* * *

><p>I threw open the door and swung myself into what seemed like the only hospital room that was unlocked. However, in my haste I wisely closed the door quietly and slid against it, calming my breaths so you couldn't hear them from the hall. I tensed as I heard Zhanna's loud footsteps run in front of the door and continue down the hallway. I only allowed myself to relax after I knew she was gone for sure. I returned to my ragged breaths, and let myself slide almost completely to the floor. Although I would never admit it to her, Zhanna was right that it would have been best for me to rest. After running away and dodging her for about half an hour or so, I felt dead. Well, almost dead.<p>

I froze, realizing that I wasn't alone in the room. I pushed myself up only to meet the steely eyes of Hibari Kyoya. For a while, all we did was stare at each other.

"What," he started, his gaze sharpening, "Are you doing here, Kumo?"

"What," I breathed out, still trying to catch my breath, "are you doing here?" His eyes narrowed. I raised an eyebrow. It was strange. It seemed like he was embarrassed that I found him. It was only then that I noticed he was shirt-less and was in the middle of wrapping bandages around his torso. "Oh," I muttered, putting the pieces together. "_Oh,_" I repeated when I remembered who gave him those injuries.

"Why did you come here to tend to it?" I asked him cautiously. He turned his head away from me, and I thought he wasn't going to answer.

"I ran out of bandages at home," he muttered quietly. Ah. So he was taking care of it, or at least, trying to take care of it. He probably didn't want to ask for help just because he didn't want others to know he was injured. However... I almost winced looking at the half-wrapped wound, clearly seeing purple and red skin.

"Your battle is tomorrow, right?"

"Yes," he replied simply, going back to wrapping his wound. I pushed myself up and began to walk over to where he was leaning against the bed. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Kyoya, let me heal you," I said.

"What?"

"Let me heal you," I repeated bringing out my gloves from my pocket. "Your battle is tomorrow and it's clear that this wound is going to slow you down. It would be better for everyone if I just heal you. That, and nobody would even know you were injured." His glare lessened, giving me hope that he was actually considering my proposal.

"Fine." It was almost a growl. There was a moment where I was actually processing that he was allowing physical contact. I then realized, as I moved with a start to get my gloves on, that this wasn't really surprising, since the only reason he was letting me do this was so he could go all out in his fight tomorrow (he's such a battle freak). As I shakily gathered my focus (dutifully ignoring how bad his injury actually was now that it was completely uncovered), it being much harder to gather the energy for the flames this time, I slowly began putting the pieces and details together to distract myself.

So, Kyoya managed to piss off Zhanna (which isn't hard to do. I should know best) and she ends up nailing him in the ribs and stomach (she said she was holding back, but from these wounds I'm not sure so sure. However, if she was holding back, that just made me escaping from her even more crucial). Kyoya, who is too prideful to ask anyone else for help, tries to treat the wound himself, but ends up making it worse by not going in for professional help. Eventually, he either realizes this, or just runs out of supplies to treat himself as he told me (however, I don't know if that's the truth, or if he was just being prideful as always). Knowing that Dino had rented out this hospital, Kyoya probably managed to sneak past Dino and the guys to use the hospitals supplies. I knew Dino didn't know Kyoya was here because A) Kyoya wouldn't want him to know and B) If Dino knew, he would be in here mother-henning over him.

It was probably a good thing that I was the one to discover him actually, I realized as my breaths became more ragged and I struggled to keep my exhaustion concealed. If Kyoya just treated himself as he had planned, then he would still be badly injured in his battle tomorrow. Of course, I don't know how that would affect things as a whole, seeing how I've already screwed up the plot anyway.

Throughout this process, I tried not to make it obvious I noticed how much pain he was in. Although, out of all my patients I've had so far (which is like, what? Two?), Kyoya was handling the painful side effect of my healing the best. Then again, Bel was unconscious during the process, so I guess I can't really count him. I tried not show how much this bothered me, seeing how much pain he was enduring while I healed him. My mind drifted, wondering how much agony Basil felt when I was trying to 'help' him. I wondered, even though he was unconscious, if I was hurting Bel when I was attempting to 'save' one the most important people to me.

I frowned, and pushed away from the bed, away from Kyoya, who let out a heavy sigh and released his iron grip from the bed railing. I tried to stand up, but ended up giving up and falling back onto the bed, just as Kyoya was standing up, tenderly touching the spot where the wound was and twisting slightly to see if it was completely healed. I watched this as I was holding back coughs, eventually failing, just hoping I didn't begin to cough up blood again. I noticed Kyoya was staring at me (was it with respect? Thankfulness? Suspicion?), then I realized he was staring at the gloves on my hand.

"What is that?" He asked. I blinked, not understanding what he was asking, and trying to see clearly as my vision blurred. "That light that was on your hands," he continued.

"Flames," I coughed out. I cringed, cursed and rolled over, raising a hand to wipe the small bit of blood off my mouth. "Dino... will explain..." I coughed again, my whole body shaking. I looked at Kyoya one last time before my vision completely faded, only managing to sputter three more words.

"Kyoya...find Zhanna."

* * *

><p>"There's something wrong with your sister."<p>

Dino almost jumped when he heard the voice. He turned around to find his student, staring at him intently. Dino let out a sigh of relief, and Romario laughed lightly behind his boss.

"A lot of things are wrong with Cloud, Kyoya. You just got to learn to get used to it," Dino said jokingly with a smile. Hibari's eyes narrowed and with his next words, the smile on Dino's face dropped instantly.

"She's injured."

"Where?" were the first words out of the don's mouth. Hibari was almost surprised by the intensity of his eyes and by the change of mood. Hibari wordlessly turned down the hallway once more, only fastening his steps when Dino threatened to take the lead. The moment the prefect slowed to stop in front of the already open door, Dino was ahead of him, in the room. Hibari, not knowing what else to do, watched by the door as his tutor checked his sister's breath and pulse, the look on his face growing more worried as time went by. Her eyes were barely open, yet Hibari understood that she was seeing nothing.

"She's barely breathing." It was almost a whisper. Romario pulled his boss away, but Dino barely reacted. The shocked, broken look remained on his face.

"I can't feel her pulse anymore."

Hibari's fist tightened. He glared at the girl, trying to understand why simply healing him would push her this far. It was weak, stupid. The herbivore was dying because of him. Hibari tensed as he felt a presence, a familiar, almost terrifying presence approach from behind. He barely moved a step when he was roughly pushed against by the woman who entered the room. His eyes snapped up to hers, but he was surprised to find them not looking back. Instead they were trained on Cloud, and in those eyes he saw hate, pity, annoyance, and the smallest amount of fear.

This was not a time for a fight, Hibari understood. Looking around the room once more, seeing her limp body, with her chest not rising, how broken Dino was, and his right hand man's failed attempts to revive his boss's dear sister (that was dear to him too, dear to all of them, their dear princess), Hibari realized that this was not a place for a warrior. And so, he stepped back, allowing Zhanna (someone he met as a warrior, but now, in this room, did not carry that same title) to take on a new, needed role.

Dino's once frozen, shocked eyes moved up, turning angry when he met the Russian assassin's scarred face.

"You said you would take care of her!" Zhanna simply glared back and grabbed Romario's shoulder, throwing him away from the girl lying limp on the bed and into his boss.

"What are you doing?" Cold, rage filled eyes met his and a sneer slipped onto her marred face.

"Taking care of her," was her simple reply in slow Japanese. "And if you want me to do my damn job then stay the fuck out of my way." Leaving them slightly stunned, she reached for Cloud's hands, easily pulling the gloves off. Fitting them over her own hands, Zhanna moved her fingers, stretching the fabric. "Let's hope this works," she grumbled before putting her hands on Cloud's chest.

Dino's eyes narrowed, not understanding what the assassin's plan to save his sister was. Then, as a sharp green light sprung to life against Zhanna's hands, he understood all at once.

"Wait, stop!"

* * *

><p>"Can I rant here for second?" He opened his mouth to reply, but I cut him off before he could say 'no'. "Apparently, when I heal someone, they end up feeling even more pain!" I threw my arms up in the air, then roughly crossed them, leaning my head closer to Mukuro in my rage. "How messed up is that? I set out to help people and I just make it worse!" Mukuro sighed and frowned, raising an eyebrow at my actions. Hannah huffed form her position leaning against the tree.<p>

"You seem bothered by this," Mukuro yawned, obviously not as invested in the topic as I was.

"_Dìyù a,_ I am!" I kept my angry glare until it melted off in the face of his bored expression. I sighed sadly and laid back on the soft grass, staring up into the leafy, sunlit canopy of my garden. A light, almost chilly breeze accompanied my sigh. "I just want to help the people I care about, not hurt them," I explained to the illusionist, not bothering to question myself why I even told him this (although I questioned it later, thinking back on it). "And if healing them hurts them so much, then why even do it? It just seems like all I ever do is make things worse." Mukuro scoffed, chuckling at my words. I shot up angrily, offended that he would laugh when I opened up to him.

"Don't be hurt, Chiavarone." He held up a hand, stopping me before I could say anything. "Do you not realize the uniqueness of your ability? From what that one has told me," he gestured to Hannah, "your healing ability is not only accurate, but it can heal in an incredibly short amount of time. If you continue to improve this skill, and focus on concentrating your flame even more, you might even be able to perform delicate procedures, or speed the process up even more to be useful in the middle of a battle. The pain is only a small price to be paid, and if they can't handle that, then I say they don't deserved to be treated. Not to mention, it can also improve your own pain tolerance when you heal yourself." I blinked, letting the words sink in. My eyes narrowed.

"Did you just compliment me?"

"Of course not, I was simply complimenting your healing technique; not you."

"Enough of this feelings, insecurity bullshit," Hannah called out, pushing herself away from the tree trunk, obviously fed up with our conversation. "What I want to know is why she," she pointed a finger in my direction, "Could only see your illusions."

"Which, is something I'm not very happy about," I added with a huff. "I want to see illusions other than yours, thank you very much." Mukuro rolled his eyes at my statement before sitting down with a thoughtful look in the throne that grew up from the ground behind him.

"That was actually something I was wondering about myself," he admitted with a thoughtful hum. He continued, "And it was one of the reasons I wanted you to see my battle. To test a theory."

"You knew I could only see your illusions?" I asked, making myself comfortable on the grass. Hannah sat down beside me as Mukuro explained further.

"I didn't know for sure," Mukuro admitted. "It was simply a theory, however it made sense. Even I had trouble infiltrating your mind, so I wouldn't think you would be affected in a simple illusion battle, especially since you weren't the one being directly targeted. It takes you actually letting someone in to get into your mind," he concluded, then added, "without completely breaking it, of course. It's such a fragile thing, after all."

"Then," I drawled, putting the information I was just given together, "in order for me to be affected by illusions, the illusionist must already have access to my mind, like you do now?"

"But didn't you let Mammon in a while ago?" Hannah inputted.

"Yeah," I agreed, remembering when Mukuro first came into contact with my mind, "then why couldn't I see his illusions in the fight?"

"His presence either wasn't there long enough, or it fades over time," Mukuro guessed. "Or he simply wasn't strong enough to leave an imprint," he added with a smug smirk.

"Okay, just because you won once doesn't mean you can get cocky," Hannah noted, rolling her eyes.

"Isn't he always cocky?" I questioned, tilting my head.

"Despite how cocky I am, _and with reason_," Mukuro drew us back to the topic on hand, with the slightest twitch of the eye. "You have a great advantage, little Chiavarone.'

"I do?" I repeated, not seeing his point.

"You can't see illusions, which means you can't be tricked in battle," He explained. "Therefore, any illusionist you encounter will be useless against you, of course unless they're skilled in combat, which, fortunately for you, most illusionist aren't. However, you are still powerless to my own illusions."

"Then it's good we're on the same side," I reminded him with a sly smirk. He returned with a smirk of his own.

"It's cute that you believe that, little Chiavarone," he chuckled, narrowing his eyes.

"Also, there's something else I wanted to ask you about," I admitted, remembering something. "Did you notice anything... weird about me when we talked?" His eyebrows collided, not understanding my question.

"What do you mean by weird?"

"I mean..." I struggled for the words. "Okay, look, when I saw you, you seemed more... reserved than you are when you're in here. But, at the same time, I could still understand you. Well, understand you as much as I can understand you in here, which isn't that much," I tried my best to explain. Mukuro tilted his head down, thinking. Then, as if something suddenly clicked, he let out a soft 'ah' and chuckled.

"Kufufufu, we simply saw for the first time how we acted in the real world. In here, in your mind," he held his arms up, gesturing at the space around us, "What we see when we interact is simply our conscious. When we say and do things in this realm, there is no physical process we must step through; the words and actions just come out, sometimes without us even realizing. Therefore, when we met each other in the real world, we are both different, more reserved in our actions and words, even appearances. For example, even when talking to you for that short amount of time, I noticed that you are for more reserved in both words and actions in real life, more careful in what you say. However, that might have just been because that Acrobaleno was watching you like a hawk," he smirked, as if the fact that Reborn stalking me was amusing to him.

I made a small 'o' with my mouth, just remembering something.

"Speaking of Reborn," I started with an awkward smile directed towards Mukuro. His smirk dropped instantly and he narrowed his eyes.

"What did you do?"

"He may have kind of noticed that I know you," I continued on, looking away from Mukruo's intense gaze. "And he might have maybe asked me about it. So, to get him off my back, I might have maybe, sort of..." I trailed off, meeting his eyes again. He sighed and rubbed his temples.

"You blamed it on me, didn't you?" He sighed.

"I figured you wouldn't mind being the bad guy in this, since, you know, you're kind of already the bad guy anyway," I said, relieved that he wasn't too mad.

"So, what?" He said in an annoyed tone. "You made yourself look like the victim? The damsel in the distress?"

"That's exactly what she did," Hannah said before I could answer myself.

"That's not the point," I object quickly. "but it's not like you were helping when we talked," I accused the illusionist. "Dropping little hints everywhere, pinching my cheek," I hissed, lifting a hand to touch said cheek. "You're not even trying to hide our relationship." He scoffed.

"What relationship? What am I to you, little Chiavarone? What are you to me?"

"Well, I figured you're like my therapist or something," I admitted a bit sheepishly. His expression dead panned.

"Your therapist?" He repeated.

"You really need some help if you have him for a therapist," Hannah relented, giving me a sideways look.

"And why, little Chiavarone," Mukuro said with a now amused tone, "Do you consider me your therapist?

"Well," I crossed my legs, diving into my full explanation (that I have put a lot of thought into), "It was either that or counselor, and since one of the ways I remember how to spell _therapist _in English is that it spells out _the_ _rapist_, I figured that would fit you better. Now, I'm saving the counselor title for the other one." Mukuro stared at me with a blank face. Then, one eye twitched. His trident materialized beside him and he grabbed it, using it to push himself up.

"You're dead, little Chiavarone," he promised with a smile.

"You're quite popular today," Hannah noted as I began scrambling away with every step Mukuro took forward.

"I know right? Two people that want to kill me today," I joked, trying to ease the tension. "I mean you'd think one was enough, right Mukuro? Please?" I pleaded more desperately, backing all the way up to the tree. As this was happening, a violent wind was picking up around us, shaking the tree itself. It seemed Mukuro remembered the danger of frightening me when he was forced to dodge a tree branch that was torn from the tree. He took a deep breath, and let go of his trident, which dissolved like sand into the wind. I took a few calming breaths myself, until the wind died down to a calm breeze.

"You're getting better at controlling it," Hannah reminded me. I let out a sigh of relief, then noticed Mukuro looking at me curiously.

"You mentioned there was someone else you wanted to tell of your... predicament in one of our earlier conversations as well," Mukuro pointed out. "And I want to know who it is," He finished with a forced smile. Hannah interrupted me before I could answer.

"You sure we can even trust them?" she pointed out. "This person... telling them would be risky," she reminded me. I shrugged, brushing it off.

"Besides Mukuro, they're the only one that could possibly believe me."

"I'm still against it," Hannah turned away, crossing her arms in defiance. I sighed, but turned away as well.

"It doesn't matter. We have a long time before we even run into them," I ignored Mukuro's annoyed expression for neglecting his question.

"At least," I added as an afterthought, "We should have enough time as long as I don't screw with the plot too much."

"I have to say, little Chiavarone," Mukuro said with a dark chuckle. "I'm surprised you're managing to block out the pain you're supposed to be in right now." Now, this got me to stop ignoring him.

"What?"

"Mukuro, don't tell her that!" Hannah scowled at the illusionists, who simply shrugged in response.

"You've been mentally blocking it off for long enough now. Besides, it's going to reach her anyway, no matter how hard you try."

"Hannah," I looked at my old self. "What does he mean?" She sighed and crossed her arms, irritably.

"When you're in here for as long as I was," she sent an ungrateful look my way, "You get to know little tricks."

"Yeah," I agreed with her, already knowing this, "That's how you're able to show Mukuro memories in such detail, but you said something about suppressing pain, blocking it or something?" She looked up with slightly guilty eyes.

"Not for much longer." I reached for her, then fell back with my mouth gaping as an unbelievable striking pain blossomed form my chest. I expected to hit the ground, but nothing was there. It was void. Everything was gone, everyone was gone. I was alone. I was alone in the void with only my pain.

I screamed.

* * *

><p>"Ow!" Tsuna stepped back, blinking rapidly and rubbing his head to get over the shock of being hit by one of the front doors of the hospital. "Ah!" He looked up, recognizing the girl immediately.<p>

"Boss…" Chrome uttered, surprised to see him as well.

"Erm… that is… wh-what should I call you?" Tsuna asked lamely. "Chrome? Dokuro?"

"Anything is okay," she responded quietly. Now that Tsuna was thinking about, she was always quiet. Chrome was a rather reserved girl. He blinked, coming out of his thoughts as she began walking away.

"Er, wait…where are you going?" She turned towards him.

"They said Ken and Chikusa ran off somewhere, and I couldn't see Cloud since she's resting now."

"Eh…" Tsune sweat-dropped, realizing that her 'friends" left her behind. He then took in the second half of her sentence. "Wait?! Cloud resting? What does that mean? Is she hurt?" Chrome took a step back as he leaned forward.

"They told me she was injured badly," Chrome answered nervously. With a worried look, Tsuna looked away from the girl and towards the hospital.

"Cloud..."

"Um, boss?" He looked back to Chrome, finding her staring at him with shy, curious eyes. "What… what kind of person is Cloud?"

"Eh? What kind of person….?" He looked down, deep in thought. Memories of Cloud flashed through his head, (her always making him feel better just talking to her, Cloud always insisting on helping his mother, the loving nicknames and light jokes she says around him) and he smiled. Then, then smiled turned into a terrifying expression as he remembered _other _memories of Cloud (her using him as a sled, sacrificing him to Hibari so she could escape, her constant nicknames and pokes at him).

"Insane," he stated. "She's completely insane."

* * *

><p>"Dino…are you okay?"<p>

"Hm?" The older mafia boss snapped out of his thoughts and looked down at Tsuna. There was a pause, then Dino laughed nervously.

"Of course I am, Tsuna!" He swung his arm around "I already told you that Kyoya was going to be fine in the fight! There's no need t-"

"Is it about Cloud?" Tsuna's serious eyes met Dino's. "What exactly happened to her? What's going on with her?" Dino sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

"She's just… look, I don't really know. I don't understand much of what's going on with her lately. Guess it's her rebellious phase or something?" He laughed a bit, but Tsuna could tell that it was forced. "She's just been doing a lot of risky, stupid things lately and she got hurt. Really hurt. Zhanna…" he trailed off, his eyes hardening. "…she's being looked after." A tense silence passed between them. "No offence or anything, Tsuna," Dino started, wanting to change the subject, "but don't you have other things to worry about other than my little sister?"

"Huh? Like what?"

"Like the battles being dragged out even though it's obvious who the winner is going to be," Dino said, frowning. "Even if Kyoya loses tonight, which he won't, you guys are still ahead. It's suspicious that they're continuing. This could turn into something dangerous."

"And that's exactly why you have to continue your training. You must perfect the dying will zero point breakthrough by today." Both stiffened at the familiar voice, and slowly turned to the window.

"Reborn! N-ninja? Wait, what did you say? It's already over isn't it? And Hibari is going to win tonight so that's even more reason why I shouldn't have to train anymore!"

"Dino was right when he said this was dangerous," Reborn explained, perching on the windowsill in his ninja costume. "What will you do if something happens?" Tsuna made an aggravated sound, bending his knees and clutching his head.

"Eh! But something always happens!"

* * *

><p>"She's still out cold." Dino didn't even bother to look at the voice as he walked into the room, instead going straight to his sister's side. He grimaced, noticing the bandages wrapped around her chest, but was relieved to see it rising and falling rhythmically. He repressed the memory of when it wasn't, and instead turned cold eyes towards the person he blamed for this. Truthfully, he was just looking for a scapegoat. He was tired of putting all the weight on his own shoulders.<p>

"Was it really necessary to use your flames on her?"

"Yes," Zhanna replied staring him straight in the eyes, "it was."

"It almost killed her," he growled, gesturing towards her wrapped injuries.

"And yet, if I hadn't done it, she would be dead."

"… you don't know that," Dino said, mostly trying to convince himself. "You've barely known her. What right do you have to be here? To protect her?" Dino's voice began to rise, stress catching up to him causing him to let go of all the emotions that have been built up over time. "She's all the blood I have left, it's my job to protect, to give her what she wants and needs! She's my sister, my family. It's my job to take care of her," He grew quiet, then, in a movement that almost look like falling, he sat down in the chair behind him. His expression was broken, not being able to hold back the image of his sister, lying still, cold, unmoving. Dead.

Meanwhile, while Dino was growing colder, the assassin sitting on the other side of the bed was filling with harsh rage. She gripped the arm rest of the chair with her fist, eventually breaking it. She stomped her foot down, causing Dino's head to snap up. His desperate eyes were what sent her over the edge.

"I've saved your sister twice!" Zhanna snarled. "You say you want to protect her, but you're too pathetic to even do that! It's your job to look after her, to give her what she needs, what she wants? I know more about what she wants than you."

"And what does she want?!" Dino asked, desperate, pleading. "I've never understood that! I've never understood her! She just goes off and does what she wants without thinking of the consequences and for what? For herself?"

"No." The answer was immediate, firm. "Never for herself." Zhanna's eyes were angry, offended even. It was enough to make Dino feel ashamed for even assuming that.

"Everything she does is for everyone else, everyone but herself, and yet she still thinks of herself as selfish. She wants to grow stronger for you, for family. She's almost died twice, throwing her life to heal, to give back. You want to understand her, but why should you? Why do you have to understand her?"

"Because… because she's my sister. Aren't siblings supposed to understand each other?" Zhanna let out a harsh bark of laughter.

"I have three older siblings, and do you think we understand each other? Hell, no! But, we do trust each other and that's what you need to do with Cloud."

"It's not that I don't trust her!" Dino argued, "It's that I don't trust that she'll be safe! How can I know that?"

"You can't." Zhanna shrugged. "You'll never be able to know for sure. But that's reality. That's life. And you have to trust life."

"What do you do when life betrays that trust?" Dino asked quietly, thinking of his father, his mother, and the many family members he has already lost.

"You move on," Zhanna said coldly. "You keep moving with your own strength. It's hard," Zhanna said, meeting his eyes. "Nobody waits for you. You must keep moving, or you get left behind."

"Did you get left behind?"

"No, but someone else did and I didn't wait for them." A sharp silence filled the room. Dino understood that it was a topic the assassin was not interested in talking about. "You can't," Zhanna continued, tearing through the silence, "just fall apart when something gets taken from you. Even if that something is all you have left. I know you are capable of being strong, Bronco. I know that you are forced to be strong. You must sustain that strength through everything, even when you are about to break."

Dino took a deep breath, tilting his head up to look at Cloud. He moved his hand until it was on top of hers, simply sitting there, reassuring himself.

"I have to admit," he said quietly, "I never thought someone like you could give such an uplifting speech." Zhanna scoffed and pushed herself up, swinging her arms and stretching them.

"Don't get the wrong idea, Bronco," she sneered, her Glasgow scar grinning eagerly. "You just pissed me off, so I went off on you. But on a more serious note-"

"What? We weren't being serious enough?" Dino remarked dryly.

"She needs to learn how to control her flames." Dino's eyes flickered away from his sister, focusing on the assasin. "She completely disregards her own health. Although the gloves worked, they're still prototypes. Broken prototypes now. But, the point is that she still has a long way to go before she can do what she really wants to do with her ability. The problem is that she thinks she can do what she wants now…." Zhanna paused before continuing, as if debating whether or not to ask him this now, if this was the right moment. But, as always, Zhanna decided to charge straight ahead.

"I'm taking Cloud with me to train to learn how to use her flames."

"… what?" Dino stared up at the assassin, whose arms were firmly crossed, determined to stand by her words. "You can't just take my sister. Now after what you did to he-"

"To save her life," Zhanna finished for him. "And we both know that this needs to happen. She has to learn how to use her flames properly. We both know that if this doesn't happen now, that," she pointed at Cloud, "will keep happening. She's stupid and stubborn enough to keep it up. I'll let you come to terms with it," she said as she began to walk out of the room, "and besides, it's not like you can actually stop me if I really wanted to take her."

And with that, Zhanna slammed the door short, leaving Dino alone with an unconscious, injured sister and a heavy mind.

"Oh, and just a warning if you talk to her later," Zhanna stuck her head back in the room, scaring the mafie boss, "she's going to be in a lot of pain from that, so there's a lot of pain meds in her system. Basically, until she's a bit better and when the last of the meds gets out of her system, she's going to be spouting all kinds of shit when she wakes up. You know, all fucked up 'cause the meds, not in her right mind… well, more than usual. Should be interesting to see, yeah?"

Dino's eye twitched as she slammed the door again. His head dropped and he let out a loud sigh.

"Forgot about blaming this on her," he complained, looking up at his little sister. "I'm just going to blame it all on you, Cloud. It's usually your fault anyway, right?"

* * *

><p>"Listen up, people! No matter what happens, we have to win!"<p>

"What are you talking about Gokudera? Haven't we already won?" Yamamoto pointed out. "And besides, it's Hibari who's fighting, so he'll win anyway."

"What's the point of getting so worked up?" Ryohei agreed.

"You idiots! Don't you get that something's not right here?! We have to be prepared for anything, for the tenth! He's counting on us! So we have to be careful! Make sure you don't miss one thing!" Gokudera announced, shifting his eyes around, already on the lookout for suspicious activity.

"That's right," Zhanna said, roughly swinging an arm around Gokudera's neck. "Can't let anything sneak up on you, right?" He made choking sound, and pushed away from Zhanna, who easily let him out of her grip, laughing.

"You! What the hell are you doing here?!" Gokudera pointed an accusing finger at her while both Yamamoto and Ryohei tensed, immediately sensing how dangerous this person was.

"Same as last time, Smoking Brat," Zhanna replied casually, resting her hands behind her head, "to watch. But, you guys are wise to wary. That type will do anything to get what he wants. Fun guy, right?" Zhanna then looked behind them and pointed. They turned to see Hibari walking towards the group, already bringing out his tonfas when he caught sight of the Russian.

"Well," Yamamoto smiled, the first to believe Zhanna's words, and turned to Hibari, "here's the man of the hour." Zhanna grinned as Hibari stalked closer.

"As much as I'd love to spill some of your blood, brat," she sneered coming forward to meet him, "I'm afraid I'm not your opponent tonight."

"Oh?" Hibari smirked, glaring up at her with fire in his eyes. "Are you backing out?"

"Never," Zhanna snarled in reply. "Just prolonging your death by my hands, so you better not fucking die in this battle." The other three watched this encounter with tense expressions, expecting the two wild animals to attack each other at any second. Hibari scoffed in response.

"I'll bite you to death before that happens."

"You deaf, brat?" Zhanna growled, not liking to repeat herself. "I already fucking told you. I'm not fighting you tonight. He is." Zhanna pointed behind her just as Gola Mosca jumped down, revealing himself. Hibari sent Zhanna one last glare before stalking forward again to meet his opponent.

"First, I'll bite this one to death, then I'm hunting you down," he promised her without turning back. She let out a bark of harsh laughter.

"Then you better make this a good show for me, brat."

* * *

><p><em>"Oh, you're awake."<em>

I blinked rapidly, staring quizzically at the ceiling. Everything was… floaty. I felt nothing. Absolutely nothing. My eyes widened and my arms flew to where my legs should be, patting them wildly to make sure they were there.

Zhanna quickly reach over and grabbed my arms, stopping them from moving.

_"Holy shit, calm down,"_ she said, giving me a strange look. _"What the fuck was that about?"_

_"I had to check,"_ I told her in a serious tone, talking in extremely slow German since I was having trouble remembering the words.

_"Check what?"_

_"To see if I still had legs,"_ I said, my eyes leaving her face. Zhanna squinted at me. I squinted back_. "Do you_ _always look like that?"_

_"Like what?"_ she replied with a dangerous tone.

_"Like you're smiling,"_ I said, weakly lifting an arm to point at the Glasgow grin on her left cheek. I giggled, a thought entering my head_. "It makes you look happy."_ She blinked, not knowing how to respond to me in the state.

_"You are so high,"_ she muttered quietly.

_"Is that why I feel floaty?"_ I wiggled around, maybe to see if I could actually float off the bed.

_"Stop. You might open up your wounds."_ I blinked at her confused. She raised an eyebrow. _"What?"_

_"I… have wounds?"_ I repeated. She nodded and pointed to my chest. I looked down, extremely surprised to see thick bandages wrapped around my chest and torso under the hospital gown I was wearing. _"But…"_ I trailed off, my eyebrows knitted in confusion. _"If I'm hurt… then why don't I feel anything?"_

_"That's the meds doing their job,"_ Zhanna explained slowly to me. _"And that's why you're acting like this. Don't know what to think of it yet, though."_

_"Oh."_ I went back to staring at the ceiling, but it wasn't long before another thought enveloped my mind completely. _"Wait. I got hurt,"_ I repeated. _"How… how did that happen?"_

_"Well,"_ Zhanna trailed off sheepishly. _"I kind of had to defibrillate you."_ I stared at her with squinted eyes, trying to make sense of the words. She sighed and rolled her eyes. _"I zapped you with my lightning flames."_

_"Oh. I get it,"_ I nodded happily, most likely not really getting it. _"Then what happened?"_

_"That's… that's pretty much it with you,"_ she admitted. _"You've been asleep this whole time. Missed the Cloud Battle. A bunch of shit went down there."_

_"So, what happened at the..."_ I paused, searching for the word, _"battle?"_

_"Well,"_ Zhanna began, propping her feet up on the bed and leaning back in the chair like she always does, fully prepared for this question (it was like she was just waiting for the chance to explain it to someone), _"the prefect brat takes the robot down like it was nothing, which it probably was nothing with how quick that fight lasted. Everyone thinks it's over, even with the bullshit order those bitches said the ninth gave about going all the way to the end and choosing the correct guardians and all the bullshit, but then Xanxus and the brat start fighting, but the brat is shot in the leg by the robot, which is still functioning. You getting this?"_

I blinked, then nodded, giving her a goofy grin. She rolled her eyes and continued, but not before muttering something about maybe not telling me when I was in this state or something along those lines.

_"The shitty robot goes berserk. Missiles and bullets flying everywhere, mines going off like crazy. Xanxus sputters some bullshit about the restraining system breaking, but it's clear that he planned this. Of course, it become obvious that this was the reason he had to pull the fights out longer, because he needed the robot to go berserk. So, the pissy brat's injured, shit has hit the fan, and here I was ready to step in myself. Then the Vongola brat flies in like some god damn hero and ends up destroying the robot."_

Her voice grew serious at this point.

_"The robot had the ninth Vongola boss in it. Xanxus had kidnapped the boss, placed an imposter that he controlled completely in his seat, and put the real one in Gola Mosca. So, Tsuna ends up destroying the robot, and hurts, almost kills, the ninth in the process_. _Xanxus goes on this big rant about Tsuna being the one to cut the ninth done. Which, he did, but that's not the point. Anyway, the old man, who looks like he's about to croak, starts talking about the cradle affair. You know about that?"_

_"__Yep,"_ I replied, then continued making small popping noises.

_"….Right. Thought you would. Technically, I'm not supposed to know about it, but fuck that, you know? Then, after talking about that for a bit, the old man starts spouting off about all this warm, feelings stuff, which was boring, so I'll skip a little. Then it looks like the old man kicked the bucket, right then and there, so Xanxus starts off again how the brat killed the boss and all that shit. Says the ring contest is meaningless, vows to kill the brat for vengeance. Reborn finally connects things together for everyone else, and explains this was what he really wanted; to make someone else the villain so he could be boss, no problem. So, the whole ring battle thing was just a rouse anyway, and really none of the fights mattered in the end, despite who won or lost. You spent all that time training the bomb brat for nothing, really."_

_"Don't,"_ I snapped at her somewhat groggily, _"remind me. But that doesn't matter, because I taught him a good lesson anyway, so in the end, it was worth my time….. yeah."_ She raised an eyebrow at me.

_"… right. So, the Cervello tell Reborn to shut up-"_

_"They didn't really say that."_

_"Fuck off. This isn't verbatim. So, they tell him to stop with the 'theories bullshit', basically revealing that they were on Xanxus's side the whole time. Reborn gets pissed, and Tsuna stands up and challenges Xanxus with his guardians backing him up and they're fixing to have an all-out battle then and there, which I would have gladly participated in. Then the Cervello bitches interfere and set up another battle for the next night. Then your brother shows up with all his goons-_

_"His men. When you…. Call them goons it makes….makes Dino sound like a villain or something. Which he is defiantly not… he'd make a really bad supervillain. Although, he does have the chair for i-_

_"Shut it. All the meds really are going to your head aren't they?"_

I nodded happily. She laughed.

_"You're annoying all drugged up, you know that, brat? Anyway, your brother tells us about the fake in Italy. Well, I said us, but he told Reborn and I happened to overhear. And that's basically all the shit you missed. The sky battle's tonight, and before you even think about, you're way too drugged up to even try sneaking out. And, you're chained to the bed."_

I blinked and looked down, seeing my ankles attached to the end of the bed by chains, stopping me from getting up.

_"Oh. Yeah,"_ I giggled. _"I am chained to the bed. You do that? That's some nice… chain work."_

She stared at me, as if trying to understand how stupid I was.

_"I wonder if you act the same way when you're drunk,"_ she muttered curiously. I giggled again.

_"Let's find out!"_ I said happily, weakly throwing my arms up.

_"You are not going to get my sister drunk,"_ Dino announced, walking in with Romario behind him. Dino gave me a strange look that I didn't understand, then sent Zhanna a strange look, something else I didn't understand. So, not understanding much at the moment, I opted for waving my hand weekly.

_"Hey,"_ I slurred out the word, suppressing giggles. _"Just in time, big bro! We,"_ I pointed at Zhanna, then at myself, _"were just about to get drunk."_

"No, you aren't going to, Cloud," Dino said seriously. "You don't need anything else clouding your judgment right now." I pouted, completely missing the look Dino sent Zhanna's way.

"You really think I'm low enough to get her to agree to come when she's like this?" Zhanna snarled, causing me to flinch back thanks to her tone. Taking in her words, I noticed something that interested me.

"Dino," I weakly pulled his sleeve, "Am I going anywhere?"

He answered no as Zhanna said yes. They glared at each other. I let out a loud yawn and looked over at Romario.

"What's their problem?" I whispered loudly to him in Italian. He simply laughed in response and patter my head.

"Cloud," Dino said as my eyes were beginning to droop. "You don't have to go anywhere if you don't want to."

"Don't worry, Dino," I said quietly. "I don't want to leave here. A lot the people I love are here… you, Bel, Romario, Tsuna, Ivan, Gokudera…" I yawned loudly, and closed my eyes. My head sank deeper into the pillow as I continued talking until my voice was barely a tired whisper. "…Bono, Squalo… Lussaria, Yamamoto, Zhanna… Dino... I don't want to leave you guys…"

And I was asleep.

* * *

><p>"Cloud?" I looked down from where I was blankly staring at the ceiling (I was thinking about something…. what was I doing?), to see Tsuna sticking his head through the door. "Ah! You're awake. I saw Zhanna-san on the way here. She said they put you on a lot of pain killers so you might be asleep. You feeling okay?" I blinked up at him lazily as he came to stand beside the bed.<p>

"I'm supposed to be feeling something?" He sighed and laughed nervously.

"She was right when she said you're on a lot of medication. You really don't feel a thing?"

"I guess not," I replied with a yawn. "Even though these marks on my chest look pretty bad," I muttered, lifting the fabric above the bandages over my chest and fingering them. "I saw them earlier when Zhanna was changing the bandages and they lo-" Tsuna, red faced and ears burning, grabbed my hand quickly.

"Don't do that, Cloud! I don't want to see anything!" He said with his eyes shut tight. I stared at his hand holding mine, trying to understand why he was so embarrassed. Then it clicked.

"It's not like I was going to show you m-

"Nope!" He released my hand and covered his ears. "Not listening! We are not talking about this when you're drugged like this!"

"… then we're going to talk about it later when I'm not drugged up?"

"No! We're never going to talk about this!" I scoffed.

"Then why did you bring it up?" He stared at me with his mouth gaping.

"I-I d-didn't! You were the one who… Augh! I came here to talk to you, but this isn't helping at all! I don't know what to do!? All of this stuff is happening and I'm scared to fail everyone. Usually talking to you makes me feel a little better, but with you like this, it isn't helping at all!"

"Don't worry," I swatted my hand lazily in the air to calm him. "Everything will turn out fine in the end, Tuna…"

"You always say that! How do you know that?"

"Oh, Tsuna, Tuna…. I know a bunch of things. For example, I know your birthday is October 14th. I know that you couldn't ride a bike without training wheels until 5th grade. I also know that you're afraid of cockroaches."

He stared at me in shock, maybe even in fear.

"Cloud," he said slowly. "How do you know all of that? I haven't told you any of it!"

"I read it," I replied simply.

"Where the heck did you read things like that?"

"The internet." He opened his mouth, then promptly shut it again in order to think of a proper response for my words.

"…that's," He paused, still taking this in, "those facts about me… are on the internet!?"

"Everything's online now a days, Tuna-fish! Get with the times!" I managed to push myself up and messily pat him on the cheek before falling back down. I frowned when I landed, noticing something. "Ow. That actually kind of hurt." I turned to Tsuna. "I need more drugs."

"NO, YOU DON'T!"

"Ssssshhhhh!" I waved my hand in the air again, grimacing. "Shut up. I'm actually starting to feel things now and you yelling doesn't help."

"It's not like you're helping me either!"

"Look, Tuna-"

"Don't call me that!"

"Tuna, what you got to do…" I trailed off, forgetting what I was going to say. Tsuna continued to stare at me, until I found my words again. "What you have to do, is remember these three things."

"Three things?" He parroted.

"Three things," I groggily confirmed. "One, believe in yourself. Two, believe in your family. Isn't that easy and simply, Tsuna? That's all you have to do." I moved my head, staring at the ceiling again with a curious look.

"Cloud?"

"Hm?" I hummed, forgetting that he was still in the room.

"What the third thing?"

"The what?" I moved my head to face him again. His expression dead panned.

"You…. forgot the third thing you were going to tell me?" I shook my head slowly.

"No," I replied. "…. Okay, yeah. I'll think of something, just give me a second." He was either nice enough, or felt sorry enough to give me enough time to think. "The third thing to remember," I announced, "Is to not seek advice from me when I'm drugged up on pain meds. It's just a bad idea, right Cloud?"

"You're Cloud," he corrected me.

"Right, Tsuna." He sighed in defeat, deciding it to wise to take my third piece of advice.

* * *

><p>"Alik, you bastard! You'd do that for me?" Zhanna leaned against the wall of the hospital hallway, grinning broadly and talking loudly in Russian.<p>

_"Of course, I will Ursa! After all, if I didn't I'm sure you'd make me regret it."_

"You know me well, Uncle," Zhanna teased, switching hands to hold the cellphone. "You're the best at flame control. And the best at teaching it."

_"And you're the strongest in the family. To refuse you is to wish for death."_

"Enough with the bullshit compliments, already," Zhanna barked, getting back to business. "When should we head up?"

_"If you want your little friend to get the full training experience with the whole family, then you two should come as soon as possible."_

"Of course, I wouldn't want her to miss out on your hellish training," Zhanna laughed. "This should be a good show. Thanks, Alik."

_"You sure you want to put her through this, Zhanna?" _her uncle asked just before she hung up.

"Dead sure," Zhanna replied without hesitation. "She needs to learn there are consequences sometime."

* * *

><p>"Is this necessary? The prince doesn't enjoy being treated like this."<p>

"Absolutely. We can't have you getting away and trying to help your boss," Dino said, watching as his men finished strapping Bel into a wheel chair, even though the self-proclaimed prince was already in a straightjacket. Dino glanced over at Squalo, but sighed when the swordsman pointedly looked away.

"Still not going to talk, huh?" Dino whispered quietly.

"By the way," Bel drawled, completely bored of out his mind, "where's the princess? She hasn't visited me for a while. The prince has been rather bored without her to entertain me." Bel's eyes narrowed as he saw Dino's fist tighten.

"She got injured," Dino explained, reminding himself that this boy was close to Cloud (and he would want to know, wouldn't he? As much as she talked about him, he should care about her too, right?). "She's resting now."

"Hm?" Bel scoffed. "What the hell did she do this time?"

"She went overboard healing my student," Dino explained quietly, "and ended up hurting herself instead." Bel clicked his tongue and looked away, almost expecting this outcome.

"Again?" The prince muttered darkly, lowering his head. "What an idiot."

* * *

><p>"This is so weird."<p>

"This," Hannah waved her arms wildly as she floated in midair, "Is all your fault… are you even listening to me?"

"….no." I held onto the grass, staring at all at the many shades of green swirling throughout it. Shapes were blurry, yet at the same time, I knew exactly what they were. I let go of the grass, not afraid to float off, just as Hannah was doing, only nothing was there to anchor me down. I would be free. Just as I was about to completely float off, someone grabbed my arm.

"I leave to gather an ally, directing them so they could help a group I once was against, and this," he gestured around us, at the blurry-shapes, swirling, almost abstract landscape surround us, "is what I come back to? Care to explain, little Chaivarone?" I blinked at him, trying to pick apart the many words he used, and figure out what exactly he was asking me.

"Oh. You want to know what happened." I abbreviated. He nodded irritably. "Zhanna zapped me," I explained simply. He stared at me blankly, then let me go, free to float off wherever I wanted to. He then promptly turned to Hannah for an explanation with a raised eyebrow.

"She's on really strong pain medications," Hannah explained to the illusionist.

"Ah," he muttered. "That explains it. When was she given it? I would like to know when it will wear off so I can know when I sho-" He stopped midsentence, as if sensing something. Mukuro tilted his head, his eyes glazing over something for a second, then returned to our small reality we were in.

"It seems like Lancia has found his way into the fight, just in time. I let Chrome know as well, so she can tell the others that help is on the way."

"Well," I drawled as I floated onwards, now hugging my knees and spinning. "Aren't you talented?" Mukuro stared at me as I floated away, eventually grabbing onto a blurry line that swirled with different colors and shades of the garden. He then looked at Hannah, floating freely in the space, the only thing holding her in place being the chain that wrapped around a now-wriggling tree. He raised an eyebrow and tilted his head in my directions.

"Did she just…?"

"She did," Hannah confirmed. "And strangely enough I think she meant it." Mukuro's eyes narrowed, as if not knowing what to make of my current state. Noticing his gaze, I turned to him, puffing out my cheeks, then making a popping sound, causing a wobbly bubble to form from in front of my mouth.

"I'm not sure if I like her better this way or not," Mukuro admitted as we all watched the bubble float up into nothingness.

* * *

><p>"He did what?"<p>

"After he got his ring and cured himself, he went after Xanxus." I closed my eyes resting my head completely on the pillow.

"You sure I'm completely clean now? This isn't some tripped out hallucination."

"Nope, Hibari actually went after Xanxus in the middle of fight." I connected the pieces together by myself after that (yet more proof I was clean of the pain medication I was given earlier. Other proof was that I could now, very clearly feel the pain on my chest where Zhanna defibrillated me).

"Fall asleep for two days and look what you miss," I muttered dryly. "But you guys needed up winning, right?"

"Yep!" Yamamoto laughed, pulling at the chain around his neck to show me the rain ring. "You missed the party we had earlier, too! It was really fun!"

"Uh huh. Don't remind me. Anything else important happen that I need to know about?" I asked the now-official rain guardian.

"Well, we had a little trouble with that hooded kid taking Chrome hostage. He confused us with some illusions and managed to get our rings, but not before we saved Chrome. Then…" he trailed off, deep in though, then laughed. "Well, a bunch of other stuff happened like Dino showing up with Squalo and that knife guy-"

"Bel. His name is Belphegor," I reminded him, my eyes wandering over to my phone lying on the table beside the baseball player.

"Right, that guy! Anyway, they showed up and Squalo… well, he talked about something, and some other stuff happened but then we won!"

"Did Hibari and Tsuna… fight together or something?" I asked, the mental image I had not fitting reality. Yamamoto hummed and scratched the back of his head.

"I don't really know, actually. When we got there, Hibari was standing back. He was hurt pretty badly, but I think he realized at some point that this needed to be Tsuna's fight. Xanxus was pretty beat up too, but we didn't see the fight because Gokudera and I were busy with the hooded kid until he escaped from us. You're lucky, Cloud!" He laughed goodheartedly, "I mean, you don't have to worry about illusions at all since you can't see them."

"Yeah, about that, Yamamoto," I said seriously, "Can you kind of keep that a secret? I don't want that getting out and around, if you know what I mean." He nodded and made a zipping motion over his lips with his hand.

"My lips are sealed," he said with a wink.

"Okay, next question," I said, confident that I could place my trust in him. "Answer me this; exactly how bad was I when I was all drugged up, because I barely remember any of it."

"Really? Nothing?"

"Just vague images and memories," I elaborated. "But nothing whole that I can go off of."

"Well, I only really know what Tsuna told us," Yamamoto admitted. "He was really embarrassed about it too!" I paled.

"What," I asked, trying to keep calm, "Did I do?"

"Um," Yamamoto said, nervously and with a slight blush creeping on his face. "He said that you tried to take your shirt off..."

"…what?" Yamamoto waved his hands in front of him quickly.

"But you didn't get far, don't worry." I sighed, but stayed still, reminding myself that if I moved around too much, I would feel pain. After days of feeling nothing, slowly beginning to feel more and more pain was not very fun.

"We are never going to speak of this again," I declared. "Moving on," My voice grew more serious. I glanced at the door before I spoke, as if expecting it to burst open at any second to interrupt our conversation. "Have you noticed anything weird about Dino lately? Like, has he been acting weird around you guys?"

"Hm?" He tilted his head slightly. "No, I don't think so." I sighed, slipping into a frown.

"So, it's just me after all." Yamamoto frowned and leaned close to me, clasping his hands together.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"He's been acting weird around me ever since... well, I guess ever since I woke up."

"Acting weird? Like what?"

"He keeps giving me these sad, worried glances. I don't know what I did wrong!" I winced as I sat up, but dealt with it. Yamamoto gave me a worried glance, but let me move.

"Well, I don't blame him for being worried. I mean," he scratched the back of his head, "You did almost die twice in the span of one week, right? If I was a big brother, and that happened to my little sister, then I probably would worry even more about you!" My eye twitched, having not even considered this possibility.

"So, he's mad at me for almost dying twice?"

"I wouldn't say mad," Yamamoto corrected, "just really worried. You guys are really close, right? So, just think about it. He probably thought he lost you. Twice. That's a lot for one guy to handle so close together."

"…. I never thought of it that way," I muttered, looking down at my lap. Suddenly, everything, all those times I just ran off on my own, head first into dangerous situations, not thinking my own health, and because I wasn't thinking about myself, I wasn't thinking about others. I wasn't thinking about how much I meant to others, about how much I meant to Dino. With our parents gone… we only have each other. Sure, we have the guys, but that's different. Dino and I are blood. I scoffed roughly, gripping the sheets of the bed with anger.

"I'm so stupid!" I lifted my fist up and threw them down again. Lifting my body up, I faced Yamamoto, ignoring the pain when I moved my shoulders and torso, stretching the still healing marks underneath the bandages around my chest.

"All this time when I was trying to help others, I've just been hurting Dino with all the stupid, idiotic, immature… Selfish! I'm just selfish, aren't I?!" I snarled angrily, not even looking at Yamamoto was trying grabbing my arms trying to calm me down.

"Cloud, stop! You're going to hurt yourself!" I froze, his words reaching me. I slumped, eventually falling back onto the bed. A calm, serene silence passed between us, the short storm before completely gone from my system thanks to Yamamoto's simple words.

"Tell me I'm an idiot, Yamamoto," I said, lifting an arm to cover my face, blocking out the artificial lights of the room. Yamamoto sighed, a sad, tired sound.

"You're an idiot, Cloud."

"…thank you."

"For what?" It was a sad, heavy question. And with that question I realized that Yamamoto, the rain whose job was to wash away others sorrows and put on a happy face for the family, might just need another rain to help him.

"For doing your job," I replied, moving my head and peeking out at him from under my arm. A gave me a sad smile, which, like water, I reflected.

"…thanks."

"For what?"

"For making my job easier." His smile faded and he slumped back into his chair, the weight of the battle they have just won being completely lifted. I realized that he must have been keeping this, this frustration, stress, sadness, all to himself. And he just needed someone to share it with, to understand.

And I did.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Just as L'scoffee said, without the SFX all the illusion battles really are really intense, overrated staring contests.**

**Gee whiz, it took me forever to do the mist battle! It's soooo long. And may I just point out the level of Cloud's stupidity? Because it's OVER NINE-THOUSAND! Seriously, this girl needs to know when to listen to her doctor/Russian assassin friend and rest (she should also listen to her brother too, since she's really starting to worry him as well). Then again, since Cloud is a healer, the saying 'doctors make the worst patients' is a scaringly accurate fit. Also, I had trouble writing that Hibari and Cloud scene, and actually this whole chapter was kind of a bitch to write (which is probably why it took me so fucking long to do). Plus, you know it turned out to be really long, which actually, now that I think about it, isn't very surprising since I fit the end of the whole arc into this chapter, effectively knocking out the varia arc.**

**So, any guesses on who the other person Cloud mentions is? I don't really know if I'm making it obvious or not (but it's not like I'm trying to bury it under a bunch of layers of anything either) but I'm just curious about who you guys think it is. Also, drugged Cloud was largely inspired by my grandmother and myself on med pains. My grandmother wouldn't believe us when we told her she already had surgery (she said "If I just had surgery, then how come I don't feel like shit?" and when someone said she shouldn't say curse words around me, she turned to me and said "Sorry I said shit."), while I was convinced there was a cat meowing in the hospital room, and continued to ask my mom "when did you get here?" all day (at least, that's what they told me). I do, however, vaguely remember doing the leg thing that Cloud did because I was 100% convinced that my legs where gone until they let me sit up and check to see if they were still there (but I seriously felt like I was floating and almost flipped out if the nurse hadn't stopped me)**

**And can I just say that you guys are awesome and I love you? I truthfully never imagined or could even fathom that this could get so popular (oh shush, 259 reviews feels popular to me) and you guys have keep me motivated to continue this! So I would just like the thank you all for your support.**

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES LOVELIES!**

**Question:**

**What is your favorite place to travel? It doesn't have to be somewhere you went on vacation or far away. It can be somewhere near you or far away from you. Doesn't really matter, as long as you went somewhere.**

I really like going to Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA). There's a bunch of gorgeous hiking trails there, I love the climate (because it's so fucking humid where I come from, so the dryness of it feels awesome to me and I don't mind drinking a bunch of water (I do that anyway)) and the town itself is so artsy. There's a street called Canyon Road (if I'm not mistaken) and it's lined with art galleries, and it's also fun just walking around the plaza. My grand parents live there and I always love going out there to visit. It seems like a place I would like to live in someday. I've been there three or four times? I took my friend out there one time and she loved it and took many, pretty pictures (she's a boss photographer).

Then again, Belize was nice and beautiful as well.

**-Klu**

**Edit: Oh, thank god I'm done editing. Now, on to the future arc! **


	30. Without a Goodbye

**Chapter 30: Without a Goodbye**

**I don't own KHR, and you guys are going to hate me by the end of this**

* * *

><p><strong>"'Don't you know? That's the secret. If you always make sure you're exactly the person you hoped to be, if you always make sure you know only the very best people, then you won't care if you die tomorrow."<strong>

**'That doesn't make any sense. If you were so happy, then you'd want to stay alive, wouldn't you? You'd want to be alive forever, so you could keep being happy.'**

**'No, no. It's the most unhappy people who want to stay alive, because they think they haven't done everything they want to do. They think they haven't had enough time. They feel they've been short-changed.'"**

**-Carol Rifka Brunt (Tell the Wolves I'm Home)**

* * *

><p>"What do you mean you're not getting involved?"<p>

"Just what you think it means," I shrugged, then laid back lazily on the grass. "I'm not getting involved in the future arc."

"There's really no way for you to, anyway," Hannah inputted, looking over at Mukuro. "Only the guardians and a few others are sent to the future. It's a selective thing that I doubt you'll get in on."

"And that's fine with me."

"How are you going to help your precious heroes then, little Chiavarone?" Mukuro asked nonchalantly from my side.

"_I'm_ not going to help them at all," I recited, causing him to raise an eyebrow. "At least, _this_ me isn't going to help them. I'll leave it to my future self, who's actually in that timeline."

"You don't do anything in this arc either," Hannah reminded Mukuro. "Your future self does all the work, remember?"

"I suppose so… it feels strange though," he admitted, "Just the thought of receiving memories of my future self and letting him handle everything."

"You," I sat up to stare at him, "of all people, are not allowed to call anything strange." He shrugged, agreeing with me.

"Kufufufu, I suppose you're right, little Chiavarone. Have you contacted Chrome yet?"

"No, sorry, I've been a little busy recovering from getting shocked by lightning flames."

"And whose fault it that?"

"Not helping," I shot at Hannah, who rolled her eyes in return. I then turned back to Mukuro. "But, I was planning on visiting her either later today or tomorrow."

"And you're sure you're not going to get involved with this 'future arc'?" Mukuro asked again. "I seem to recall you saying something similar about the recent arc we just got through."

"Stop worrying," I waved him off, laughing. "I can't think of a single reason they would want to drag me to the future. Just leave it to my future self," I said confidently, throwing a playful wink at Mukuro getting into a playful and light mood.

"I'm sure future me has everything handled."

* * *

><p>"Cloud Chiavarone…." The name almost came out as a purr. His eyes looked over the woman as she entered the room, the door immediately shutting behind her. The tattoo under his eye crinkled slightly as he smiled. Green eyes met his, annoying him even more by not being able to read them, to guess what she was thinking. She smiled at him, and his eyes narrowed at the expression.<p>

"A pleasure, Byakuran," She greeted.

"What a beautiful smile," he commented. "It's shame that it's fake."

"I could say the same of yours."

"You're not supposed to be here." The woman raised a single, elegant eyebrow as she sat down in the seat across from him, abandoning her smile completely.

"If I'm not mistaken, it was you who bargained a cease-fire with the Chiavarone to set this meeting up," she said smoothly, without a drop of emotion in her voice.

"That's not what I meant, and you're aware of that, Cloud-chan," he said, ever so endearingly. He managed to catch the smallest glimpse of an eye twitch, pleasing him.

"And if we had refused, you would have continued killing our people," she continued, ignoring his accusation. "I had no other choice."

"I'm sure your dear brother was against it," Byakuran commented idly.

"Naturally."

"But you're a smart woman, Cloud-chan," he complimented. "You only asked for a neutral meeting point and to not be searched when you came. I was happy to comply with those simple demands, just for a chance to meet you." She stiffened ever so slightly when he reached under the table they were sitting at. However, she didn't relax when he brought up a bag of marshmallows, instead of a syringe, like she had been anticipating him to.

"You want any, Cloud-chan? You seem a bit nervous," he asked after opening the bag. He shrugged when she didn't respond. "I've been wanting to meet you for a very long time. Ever since I learned that the boss of the Chiavarone had a younger sister, in fact," he added thoughtfully, as if they were acquaintances having a normal conversation. "I was already interested in you, and then, you begin helping people escape, as if you knew who we were going after. You seemed to be one step ahead of us." He said these words with a smile, but she picked out the angry undertone immediately.

"I suppose I was just lucky," she said lamely.

"We both know luck has nothing to do with it, Cloud-chan," he corrected her, happily popping more marshmallows in his mouth. "You have knowledge that I'm very interested in."

"Is that so?"

"You don't belong here, Cloud-chan," He continued happily. "You aren't supposed to exist, at least not in this world. We both know this. And yet, here you are! You're unique, Cloud-chan," he stated, as if congratulating her. "That was originally why I wanted to meet you," he admitted. "But it's clear with your actions to stop us, that you have information that will benefit me."

"Will?" She repeated. He nodded happily.

"Of course," he said casually, with a wave of his hand. "At first, I thought it was merely a coincidence, or perhaps simply a formidable opponent who was doing everything in her power to save people. But then, you gave yourself away. You messed up, Cloud-chan." She met his eyes, narrowed and confused.

"You let Sawada Tsunayoshi die."

She tried to hold back her reaction, the moment where she put together her mistake, and how he found out, but he still managed to catch it. He laid the bag of marshmallows on the table, taking his hand out of it so his fingers could playfully drum on the table.

"You know things you shouldn't, Cloud-chan," he hummed playfully. "You're special, unique. Perhaps, you were placed for this purpose. You were meant to help me, to give me this information, to share this knowledge with me."

"What makes you think I'll just hand you that knowledge?" She countered calmly, as if he hadn't revealed one of her biggest secrets and flaws, one of the things that caused her to lose so much sleep and cause her so much pain and stress.

"You'll change your mind soon enough. With a little motivation, of course." Her eyes became livid with calculations and varying information, but her face remained stoic, cold even.

"I am aware," she said formally, "of what you did to her." His eyes narrowed, becoming dangerous. "And I am aware that you are threatening to do the same thing to me. The sole purpose of this meeting was to trap me, and drug me, just so I can become another valuable piece in your game." He smiled; a terrifying, genuine expression.

"I was right," he cooed, "You're knowledge is valuable. You're special. You even admit it yourself. But, even with your knowledge, you still come. Why?"

"Because I know what kind of man you are," she answered simply, crossing her arms and leaning back in her seat. "And that you'd stop at nothing to get something you want. No matter how hard I try, or how much knowledge I possess, we still would end up sitting here in this situation. This only happened earlier because I'm tired," she said sadly, showing the first clear sign of emotion since entering the room. "I'm tired, and I want this to end."

"I see you're a very logically woman, Cloud-chan," Byakuran said happily, the earlier tension he was emitting completely gone. "And I'm happy that you've decided to give yourself up so easily." She shook her head, causing the smile to slip off his face.

"I never said that," she stated, "I'm ending this. Tying loose ends, if you will," she said with a cold, hollow smile. "I'm making sure you can never get the knowledge that I have, no matter what, because I know what kind of man you are." He remained quiet, observing, almost predatory. He was a careful man after all, and with this person, this unique piece within his grasps, he had to be more careful than ever.

"And how do you suppose to do that, Cloud-chan?" He laughed. "You've already lost. We both know that there's no way you can escape from me at this point."

"I've done my part," she said. He stiffened at her tone; almost apologetic, as if she was saying goodbye. "And now I'll put an end to this; a stalemate, so you can never get the knowledge that I have. I can't risk it," she added, more quietly, as if talking to herself. "Everything has to go exactly as it was."

In one move, one heartbeat, she had a gun pressed to her temple, with her finger daintily resting on the trigger. Byakuran stiffened, the conversation now making complete sense to him. There was a tense moment. Then he laughed.

"Oh, come on, Cloud-chan!" Her resolve remained unwavering. "You can't be serious. Think of your brother! He's already lost his love," he threw the fact out casually, as if he weren't talking about someone close to Cloud. "Think about the devastation he would feel if he learned that you died as well. It would be even more awful if he learned that you stupidly took your own life…." Although he attempted to hide it, she could tell he was growing angry, and desperate, even afraid.

"You can't do it," he pushed further, his body remaining rigid and not wanting to test her too much. "You won't do it." She scoffed, looking away from him momentarily.

"And why not?" She asked quietly. "I've done all I can. I can't change anything else. I might as well seal it with a kiss." She looked back at him, with fierce determination in her eyes and a genuine, beautiful smile on her face.

"You underestimated my selfishness, Byakuran."

And the trigger was pulled.

* * *

><p>"I'm dead."<p>

"You're over exaggerating."

"He's going to kill me," I whined, putting my arm over my eyes. "The gloves are a mess now."

"You should really take better care of your stuff." I pushed myself up, ignoring the painful protest from my chest and torso.

"You were the one who ruined them in the first place," I hissed at Zhanna. "You fried and shredded them. Literally." I held up the remainders of the gloves for proof. Zhanna blinked lazily at the evidence.

"You shouldn't have been so stupid," she replied, shrugging. I groaned and fell back onto the bed. Zhanna raised an eyebrow at my actions, eyeing my bandages. "Doesn't that hurt?"

"Hm? Oh, my injuries?" I looked up at the ceiling, thinking. "Yeah, kind of."

"Kind of?"

"Well, it's there, I've just... gotten used to it?" Her expression dead-panned.

"I restarted your heart with lightning flames, almost shredding the skin around it, basically rendering it raw, and you say you've gotten used to it?"

"…yes?"

"What the hell, Chiavarone?" She crossed her arms, giving me a strange look. "That's not normal."

"And that's coming from you?"

"Even more not normal than my standards," she elaborated.

"I'm not saying it doesn't hurt at all," I argued, "It's just that, the pain at this moment is better than the pain from healing a dislocated shoulder."

"So it's the pain tolerance from healing yourself?"

"I guess so," I shrugged. "Verde did mention something like that." Zhanna hummed, taking a moment to think.

"If I break my arm, will you heal it?" I blinked.

"Why?"

"To see how much healing it would hurt," she answered simply.

"I would," I started, "but my gloves are shredded. And that idea is stupid."

"Whatever," she brushed the insult off. "We'll just have to stop by to get Green to give you new gloves when we leave."

"What? So you can deliver me to my death on the way to my other death?"

"You still scared of my family?"

"Your family? No. It's the training that I'm terrified of," I corrected her. She gave me another strange look. I sighed. "What is it now?"

"You don't really get scared of people, do you, little horse?" I scoffed.

"Not really. I grew up around the Varia, so I'm used to those kind of people. Even when I first met them, I wasn't that afraid to go up to them, I guess," I recalled, thinking back to my childhood. "I don't really get scared when it comes to people. It comes later as a dooming sense of 'maybe-I-shouldn't-have-approached-this-person' more than anything."

"… you're not normal, little horse."

"….yeah."

* * *

><p>"So, you're going with her." I froze in the midst of packing, not having to turn around to face him.<p>

"I'm sorry."

"Are you really, Cloud?" I turned around to face my brother.

"I would like to be," I admitted. He sighed and sat on the now made hospital bed. I moved to sit next to him. "I'm not sorry for healing them," I told him truthfully. "But I am sorry for hurting you. And I'm sorry for leaving, but only for your sake."

"I'm sorry." I blinked, not expecting him to be apologizing as well.

"For what?"

"For not trying," he said, giving me a sad smile.

"Dino," I started softly. "You did try. _God_, did you try. You just… no one can understand. I don't even understand myself. Is that a thing? Do people really understand themselves?" I asked, hugging his arm and leaning into him.

"I hope so," He said, leaning into me a bit as well. "It sure would make things a lot easier." I sighed, looking around the stark hospital room.

"I have to do this."

"I know."

"Do you?" I rephrased the question he asked me earlier.

"I would like to," he said, mirroring me as well. "I would like you to tell me things, Cloud."

"I can't tell you everything, Dino," I said guiltily, leaning my head on his shoulder.

"Why?" It was a hollow, tired question.

"Because I love you." He sighed, looking down at me.

"I love you too."

* * *

><p>I passed the gates of Kokuyo Land feeling both happy and sad; a strange, yet naturally feeling mixture of emotions. The conversation with Dino weighed on me. It wasn't exactly a closure on the subject, but it was farther than we've gotten before. Every other 'talk' we've had set us both at a stand-still; we would discuss the problem, but we weren't really listening or acting on it. I was aware that I was to blame for a majority of this, but I didn't want to face the consequences. I was enjoying doing what I liked, ignoring the fact that I was hurting Dino in the process. That wasn't something I liked to think about, so naturally I didn't. It was a problem I needed to fix, and yet I didn't. I was selfish.<p>

At the same time, I was extremely relieved about the 'break' I was about to go on. With my future self handling things in the future, I could relax. And by relax, I mean train and prepare for the other arcs. I was aware of the hell I was about to go through, training with one of the most fearsome families, and I was willing to go through with it without regrets. I've been selfish enough as it is, I might as well become stronger for my family; for Dino. I just wish I could tell him that in a way he could completely understand. I frowned, changing my opinion of feeling happy and sad.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I looked up blankly to see Ken Joshima leaning out an open doorway of the building next to me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. He opened his mouth to answer, then scrunched his noise, obviously confused by my question.

"What the hell?! Wha-"

"Ken," A placid voice called from behind him. "Don't start something."

"I didn't start anything, Kappa!" Ken stepped out, to look back into the room. "She's the one who- Hey, where are you going?"

"Inside," I said bluntly as I stepped past him. I nodded at Chikusa, whose eyes barely widened in surprise at the sight of me. I then glanced over at the other side of the couch, not surprised to see Chrome sitting in quaint shyness. I could feel Ken's glare on my back, but I ignored it as I walked over to her.

"Ciao," I greeted her. "You want to do something today?"

"Hm?" The sound was barely audible.

"It's my last day in Namimori," I informed her. "I figured we could hang out if you wanted. I know a good cake shop we can go to." She blushed, now understanding what I was asking. I let her take her time in answering.

"S-sorry, Cloud-san… I don't think I'm up for it." I smiled at her, waving her apology off.

"Oh well. I tried. Here." I held out the large paper bag I had brought with me. "I brought some cakes just in case you didn't want to go. There's some for them too," I gestured towards the boys in the room.

"Y-you didn't have to, Cloud-san."

"It's fine," I assured her, as I began to make my way out. "If you guys ever need anything else when I'm around, let me know. Ciao." I leisurely made my way out, winking at Ken as I passed him. Chrome stared after me, madly blushing.

"She's weird…" Ken muttered, somewhat angrily, yet already eyeing the paper bag in Chrome's lap. Chikusa sighed, but then nodded in agreement.

"Yeah."

* * *

><p>"W-what….. what did you do?" I managed to hold back my wince as the small scientist glared up at me.<p>

"Technically, I didn't do anything," I pointed out. Zhanna scoffed behind me.

"Like hell you didn't do anything. You overused your flames like crazy." Verde took a deep breath, setting the ruined gloves down as he did.

"I thought that would happen," He said in an annoyed tone.

"Wait, what do you mean you _thought_ this would happen?" Verde looked up at me blankly after my accusation.

"They were prototypes; unrefined. They're nowhere near the precision my new gloves are at. It's only natural that the flames would come out sloppy and heavy. You only gave me so much time to make them before you had to leave." I stared at him as he hopped off the table, onto a stool, and then onto the floor, making his way across the lab we were standing in.

"You knew that too many flames would come out," I repeated, "and you still let me take them?"

"I told you that you left too early," Verde said, as if it were my fault.

"You knew?" I repeated numbly. Zhanna chuckled behind me.

"That's a pretty shitty thing to do, green," she admitted. He shrugged, now entering a combination lock in a wall.

"I was curious to see how she responded to flame exhaustion," he admitted. By this point, I was almost too bewildered to speak.

"So that conversation on the phone, when you were asking me my symptoms is detail?"

"For research," he finished, putting in other code in another pad lock that appeared after the first door was unlocked. "Why else would I ask how you felt?"

"Maybe because you're a good person and you care?" Zhanna burst out laughing at my hopeful statement.

"Don't be naive," Verde sneered as he put his finger on a device, finally unlocking the last door. "After all I'm doing for you, you should be grateful, brat," he continued as he walked back out the door, it quickly shutting behind him, locking once more.

"And what exactly are you doing for me?" I questioned dejectedly, having given up at this point.

"Supplying you with state of the art weaponry," he replied, handing me the black box he was holding to put on the table as he hopping up himself.

"Last time I checked, you just gave me shitty gloves that used too much flames," I muttered, watching as he entered yet another combination and scanned his hand on the box.

"I already told you, you ungrateful brat," he explained, getting annoyed by this point, "I was rushed on time and those were prototypes, and these," his eyes lit up as he opened the box, smirking, "are the real deal. They might even be on the ever growing list of my greatest creations." He presented me with the new pair of gloves. I sniffed, trying to act unimpressed, but already, by just glancing at them once, I could tell they were much better quality than the first.

"You gonna put them on?" I almost jumped, having forgotten Zhanna was behind me.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, trying not to let my excitement show. "They feel good," I admitted, stretching my fingers. "Almost like a second skin."

"These are fitted perfectly for your hands," Verde explained. "The material is improved, allowing you be more precise with exactly how much flames you want to exert, and for delicate procedures. I would like for you to test this while you are here," Verde added, "before you leave. I want to witness the miracle of my experiment for my own eyes."

"The miracle of my flames _and_ your invention," I corrected him, throwing him a sly look as I flexed my hand again. "You wouldn't have this without my unique flames." He sighed, and rolled his eyes.

"One of you just hurt yourselves before I hurt _you_," He muttered.

"On it."

"Zhanna, n-" I winced as she broke her finger without batting an eye. "At least it wasn't your arm…" I motioned for her to hold her hand up to me. I held the broken finger gently, stroking over the break with my fingers. Taking my time to test the new gloves out, I slowly willed my flames out, only to gasp and immediately drop her hand.

"_W__ǒ__ c__à__o_!"

"What happened?" Verde asked, clip board ready.

"I… I felt it."

"You what?"

"I felt the finger!" They stared at me. I replayed the words in my word, then decided to elaborate for their sake, and my own. "I felt it; ever bone, every crack, every nerve… I felt almost every part of the finger." Verde blinked, then smiled widely, beginning to scribble wildly on his clip board.

"Fascinating…" he muttered. "You were able to feel exactly where the break was?" I nodded, still a little freaked out. "Fascinating, simply fascinating!" His eyes lit up in a dangerous way. "It seems that I've made the material _too_ sensitive."

"Too sensitive?"

"With this new material, you're able to feel individual parts of the area you're prepared to use your flames on. Without actually healing it, you're able to tell what is wrong with the wound; what exactly is torn or broken. Just think about it; you weren't even trying then, think of what you could do if you were actually looking. You have the possibility to heal on a cellular level with enough practice with controlling your flames and creating perfect precision. I've outdone myself this time. This has become a medical breakthrough." Zhanna and I shared a look, watching Verde go off on a tangent of his own.

"Breakthrough or not," I drew him back to reality. "That was weird. And I was not ready for that." I sighed and turned back to Zhanna. "But, I'm ready now. Hand," I commanded, motioning for her hand again. She complied, and I set to work again, slowly getting more and more used to the sensitiveness of my new gloves. Zhanna frowned as I worked.

"That hurts like hell." I looked up at her with an eyebrow raised once I was done.

"You said that hurts like _hell_," I stated, crossing my arms, "and yet you just frown?" She shrugged.

"Yeah. I've been through a lot of shit. So, what?" I decided to drop the subject, turning back to Verde, who was on the third page of his clipboard, scribbling notes down vigorously.

"Thanks for the new gloves," I said, genuinely, "But, we've got to get going." He looked up at us suddenly.

"What?" It came out as a hiss. "You can't leave now. Not when I've just discovered this." I frowned and narrowed my eyes.

"Yes," I restated. "We can. This is a mutual relationship, Verde. I let you experiment with my _valuable and unique_ flames, and I get weapons out of it. We're leaving."

"And what if I don't want you to leave?" The question stopped me. I turned back, seeing a dark look on the scientists face.

"You really think you can trap both of us here?" If I hadn't known Zhanna for so long, I would have went rigid because of the killer aura she was emitting at the moment. Verde scowled, weighing his options.

"Fine," He spit out, turning away from us. I turned around, not looking back. Zhanna huffed, following me after throwing one more glare back at Verde.

"You need me for this to work Verde," I reminded him before exiting completely. "Remember that."

* * *

><p>"What exactly are we waiting here for?"<p>

"For Inna," Zhanna answered back as if that explained everything. I made a small 'ah' sound, as I leaned my motorized mountain bike that brought us to this point. I looked over at Zhanna, holding back a small smile when I took in her state. It was strange; she was calmer here, almost as if she were more at peace. I smiled wider and turned away so she couldn't see, thinking that her wild animal demeanor went along perfectly with this.

"These forests bring back good memories," Zhanna said softly. I looked over at her, watching as she blissfully surveyed her surroundings. "You're lucky, little horse. Usually, only inner family train with the Alik."

"Thank you for doing this again," I repeated.

"Don't mention it," she waved me off. "I like you, little horse. You've got guts. You might be one of the few outsiders that's able to make it through Alik's training."

"Thanks?" I answered, not sure whether to take that as a compliment.

"If I'm not mistaken, the twins should still be training as well."

"The twins?"

"My cousins. Little shits," She complained, "but talented. Natural born assassins. Then again, most of our family is. We're like monsters…." She trailed off, and her expression changed, as if thinking of something she would rather avoid. I knew better than to ask her about, having felt the same way before. Luckily for Zhanna, she was interrupted before she was able to think about it anymore.

"Ah," Zhanna said, walking towards me as we heard a rumble in the distance. "That should be Inna." I looked forward, waiting, until an armored car made its way towards us, following the rough, rigid road I had made note of when we first arrived. The vehicle came to a smooth stop in front of us. I stared at my own reflection in the windshield, and then was pulled into motion when Zhanna stepped towards it.

_"_Yo, Inna!" She called, knocking on the windshield as she walked to the passenger's door. She threw it open and yelled in, speaking in Russian. _"_Long time no see, right?" I walked around, following Zhanna, trying not to look too obvious as I peered in the open door. Zhanna clapped me on the shoulders before I could fully see in. "You take shot-gun. Get to know Inna."

"You sure?" I asked, still slightly uncomfortable with the new language, despite how much we had been practicing. "I'm getting better, I don't know that much Russian yet." She smiled, as if there was some kind of joke I was missing, and grabbed my bag, throwing it in the back seat. She then got in herself and turned back to me.

"Trust me, little horse. Your Russian is just fine, and besides, that won't be a problem with, Inna." I raised an eyebrow, but didn't question her. I soon figured out why not that wasn't a problem with Inna.

Inna couldn't speak. She was completely mute.

Damaged vocal cords, Zhanna had explained to me. A lot of her family had similar injuries.

"You'll see when you meet Alik," She said, putting her arms and the back's of our seats. "I'm pretty sure the twins have something wrong with them too." Inna looked away from the road momentarily to give Zhanna a coy look. Zhanna simply grinned back at her. I remained silent as we continued going up, observing Inna.

Naturally, coming from a family of top-notch assassins, she had an athletic, but lanky shape, nothing compared to Zhanna's build. I pinned her as a long-range type, seeing that she didn't seem fit for the up-front, brutal style Zhanna was attuned to. Short, almost pixie cut hair framed her face nicely, with brown eyes, the color of Zhanna's lighter shade. There were small wrinkles around her eyes and lips, and as I moved down to her chin and on to her throat, I noticed scars on her neck, along with a tattoo behind her ear. I stopped observing her as we came to a stone face in the road. I assumed we would keep going around the corner, but I was surprised when the wall in front of us opened, and Inna drove straight in.

"A secret based?" I wondered out loud.

"Of sorts," Zhanna shrugged. "It was an old hide-away for our family, then was refurbished by Inna and Alik for them to live in with the twins and for a training ground. It's a resort, if anything. There are a bunch of other entrances and tons of passages running through the mountain. Even though you won't have time to, try not to wander around too much. A lot of them are old and collapsing," She concluded, looking at me as we drove through a passage dimly lit by what looked to be flood lights.

"Just four people live here?" I repeated, looking at Inna. The woman nodded as she slowed the vehicle to a stop as we entered a large, almost hanger type space. "What if there's an attack?" I asked logically. Inna smiled, opening her mouth, as if she were laughing, yet no sound came out. Zhanna snorted, opening the door and stepping out.

"With these four living here?" She asked, throwing me my bag as soon as I was out as well. "They'd be stupid to." I blinked, then turned around, stopping in my tracks so as not to run face-first into the PDA Inna was holding up to me.

_'We're an independent unit of sorts.'_ I slowly translated.

"Somewhat like your Varia," Zhanna added after she had looked over my shoulder to read what Inna had typed. "Specialists." I nodded, somewhat understanding and glancing around at the variety of military-looking vehicles in the hanger. I turned to Inna again as we began to climb stairs leading up to a doorway.

"What do you guys specialize in?" I asked after she had put the combination in. I scanned over the word she had typed out for me, recognizing it easily.

_'Elimination.'_

* * *

><p>"Byakuran-sama."<p>

"Yo. You have an update from Shou-chan?" the man asked, grabbing another sweet and delicately popping it into his mouth.

"No, that's not it."

"Ah, well," Byakuran purred with a smile. "This is all very boring, isn't it, Leo-kun?" The younger man didn't know how to react. "Shall we go eat something?"

"Eh?" Leonardo sputtered, even more astonished by the leader's casualness.

"The suspense it killing me," Byakuran admitted, glancing out the window with an unreadable expression. "I so want to meet you… Namimori Junior high, class 2-A, Sawada Tsuna Tsunayoshi-kun…" He trailed off, his eyes lighting up with anticipation (and perhaps anger) as another thought entered his head.

"Leo-kun," He called to the man behind him.

"Y-yes?"

"Send me a report on the surveillance of that person… that _interesting_ person," he added with a curl of his lip, causing his expression to change to that of a snarl instead of a smile.

"Byakuran-sama, your orders were for you to be notified the moment anything changed," Leonardo reminded the man, albeit a bit nervously as he flipped through his clipboard. Byakuran sighed in an almost childlike manner.

"I guess I'll just have to wait," he complained lightly, his eyes glinting. "For my present~"

* * *

><p>Inna lifted her hand, and rapped her knuckles on the metallic wall as we entered what looked to be a large, openly spaced kitchen and living room area. Most of the furniture had the appearance of stainless steel with the exceptance of a long, L-shaped couch sitting in from of a coffee table and a large screen on the wall. I blinked, looking out a large window that covered the wall in front of us, having not realized until this point how high we were on the mountain. There was a grunt from the couch, and an arm made its way to the back of the couch, pushing a body up. The man, who I could see half of, his lower half behind the couch, yawned and blinked at us tiredly.<p>

"You back Inna?" He asked lazily, swinging around so that he could stand up. His eyes wandered over to me, and he smiled. "You must be Cloud Chiavarone. I'm Alik," he introduced himself as he walked over to us. "Inna's husband." I noticed there was something odd about the way he walked with his left leg, but said nothing about it for now, suspecting it to be an injury.

As he neared, I studied his face more. His features were of what looked to be possibly Korean descent, with dark eyes and almost black hair. His body was stout and strong, but I noticed he was shorter than Inna, who was almost Zhanna's height. Inna walked to meet him, slinking an arm around his waist, and leaning down slightly to place a kiss on his cheek. He smiled and put his arm out, gesturing around him.

"Welcome to our home," He saluted me casually. I was delayed with my polite smile, surprised by the casualness the two emitted, having expected a completely different aura. Inna smiled and lifted for PDA to type.

_'Don't be so surprised,'_ I read after she held it up to me. She then retracted it to type again, _'You are not a threat to us. There's no reason for us to act intimidating.'_

"Expectations are a dangerous thing too," Alik commented, with a smirk. Inna allowed him to slip out of her embrace and he moved toward an entrance where the window met one of the adjacent walls. Like Inna had done before, he knocked on the walls several times, copying the earlier sound almost exactly. "They sometimes don't come when I call," he explained when he had caught my confused glance. Zhanna scoffed.

"That's because they're not afraid of you," Zhanna muttered dryly. I turned to look at her, but stiffened when I suddenly felt two presences come out of nowhere behind me. I stepped forward and swung myself around, placing my hand on my hip where one of my guns rested.

"These are our children," Alik said, coming to stand by my side, as if they hadn't just startled me. I glanced at him, then looked at the two small figures in front of me, both standing perfectly side by side. They were identical, right down to a point. Their young faces were a beautiful blend of their father's Korean features, and their mother's Russian, but taking after their father more. I guessed them to be around eight years old, if their height was anything to go by. They both also wore identical, wide smiles on their faces, and shared a look before introducing themselves.

"Shura," the left twin announced.

"Sasha," the other chirped.

"But sometimes," the first held up a finger, pointing to themself. "I'm Sasha-"

"And that's Shura," the other one finished. I blinked, trying to make sense of their words.

"Don't try to learn which one is which," Zhanna warned me, throwing an arm around my shoulders. "You'll probably get it wrong, and if by chance you get it right, they'll just fuck with you and confuse you even more." I glanced at the twins in front of me, who were both still wearing identical, mischievous smiles.

"She's right," Alik informed me from my side. "It's not worth it." I stared at him.

"You mean even you can't tell them apart?" I asked their father. He shrugged.

"What can I say?" He shrugged casually. "I have devious, smart, little shits for children."

"Can you tell them apart?" I turned to Inna. She nodded with a small smile.

"Of course Mother can," the twin on the left informed me, moving to my side, throwing an arm around me, while throwing Zhanna's arm off.

"We wouldn't dare lie to her." The other one slid in between Zhanna and I, pushing their older cousin away, and slinging their arm around my shoulders as well.

"She would kill us," the one on my left chirped, leaning their head closer.

"Kill us dead!" the other agreed, moving closer as well.

"Uh-huh," I hummed, looking between their smiling faces. Zhanna growled, and took a step forward, but was stopped when Inna put a hand on her shoulder. Giving Zhanna a look, she stepped forward, holding her PDA up to me.

_'They're quite touchy. Don't be expected to have personal space around them.'_

"Personal space?" One of them repeated, laughing.

"What's that?"

"We don't know the word!"

"Shura, Sasha," Alik called, attempting to be scolding, but still showing hints of a smile on his face. "Don't freak the girl out too much."

"It's fine," I shrugged. "I'm used to… touchy people," I explained, thinking of both Bel and Lussaria.

"See, father," my left said, putting their head on my shoulder. "She's fine."

"She loves us already," the right inputted, mirroring their twin's action. I looked over at Zhanna and Inna, giving them an 'I-don't-know-what-to-do' look. Zhanna snorted, and began walking off, abandoning me. Inna made laughing motions, and then moved her hand, effectively telling her children to move away from me. They obeyed instantly, stepping back together, and putting their arms around each other's shoulders instead of mine.

"They're training as well," Alike explained. "We make sure to start young so we can bring out the full potential in our family members. You seemed to have some training starting young as well, Chiavarone."

"She's trained with two arcobaleno," Zhanna threw out before I could talk. She then casually motioned for me to throw my bag to her. I complied, and watched as she walked off. "In the usual place, right?" Inna nodded in response., and Zhanna exited out the entrance I assume the twins came out of.

"I knew by the way you reacted to the twins," Alik continued. I nodded.

"I figured that."

"You're a martial artists," he continued, "but were introduced to guns before hand-to-hand. You were trained by Fon and Colonello, in that order, but, Reborn introduced you to guns before that, right?" I nodded again, a little surprised he picked up all of that by watching me react one time.

_'Alik has trained many people,' _Inna typed. _'You're lucky. My husbands a great teacher.'_

"I honored to have him teach me," I said, bowing slightly. "When will we start?" The twins giggled.

"Oh? What's this?"

"She's quite eager, isn't she?" Inna shushed them with a look. Alik grinned broadly, clasping his hands together.

"I'm pleased that you're ready," he said happily, "even though you're already aware of how difficult it will be."

"I'm willing to do anything to get stronger," I said, looking his straight in the eyes with a serious expression. He smirked.

"That's what I like to hear."

* * *

><p>"I'm a hand-held weapons specialists," Alik announced, his voice slightly echoing as we entered the large 'playground', as the twins called it. "Hand me a weapon, any kind of weapon, no matter what type it is and I can effectively and easily kill you with it." I didn't take his words as boasting, and only acknowledged them as a hard truth. He walked over to a panel on the wall, as I watched him do so, I noticed that he had a tattoo identical to Inna's behind his ear as well. Twins lounged lazily behind us, leaning on the wall and watching with knowing smiles.<p>

"Fon created a martial artist, and Colenello made a soldier," Alik recited as he pressed his hand against the panel, a light quickly scanning it. A sound emitted from the wall next to the panel, and a large portion of it slid upwards. My eyes widened as it revealed a large array of weapons of all kinds, mostly hand-held, and some I had never seen or heard of before in both my lives. Alik casually strode over, picking a bladed object, and spinning it lightly in his hand.

"I plan to make an assassin out of you, Cloud Chiavarone."

"I thought I was here to work on how to use my flames?" I questioned, feeling a bit intimidated by the wall of weapons.

"All part of the assassin training," Alik assured me.

"Don't worry," one of the twins approached me, lightly jabbing my side with their elbow.

"We'll round you out," the other one finished, reaching up to pat me on the shoulder. I smiled at them nervously.

"But, first," Alik said, spinning the blade one last time before putting it back in its place on the wall, "I need to see where you are at." He walked to the center of the room, and I was reminded again of his left leg. He raised his arms, challenging. "Come at me, Chiavarone." I hesitated before I stepped forward to face him, put then locked that hesitation far in the back of my head. I wasn't doing this for my sake, I reminded myself as I slipped into a fighting stance.

"Ah, a reactor, I see," Alik commented after he realized I was waiting for him to attack me first. His demeanor then changed completely. "I thought so."

I bridged back suddenly, underestimating his speed, but still being able to cope with that severe estimation. I dodged as he threw a kick at me, leaning back on my arm and twisting my body. I was suddenly painfully reminded of my injury on my torso, but bared the pain, knowing not to let my opponent know of it. In the same moment, I attempted to deliver a kick to his side, and although it hit, he embraced the impact, remaining unmoving. Using the advantage, he grabbed my leg and threw me around. I gasped lightly, not expecting to be literally thrown across the room. I pushed the floor under me as I was thrown, managing to land in a roll (again, the constant stretching and movement of my body weighing heavily on my injury; I'm expecting to see some open wounds when I look at it later). A planned formed in my mind, as he moved forward to meet me again. I side stepped him, leaning away from the blow he attempted to deliver with his elbow. I rolled, avoiding another kick, then taking my hand putting all my force behind it, I jabbed my hand behind his left leg knee.

The last thing I had expected was his left leg to be made of metal.

My fingers crunched on impact, and I made a loud, pained sound, retreating immediately. I didn't even have to look at my hand to know that at least three of my fingers would be bent back, bones shattered, sticking up at unnatural angles. Alik let out a loud, robust laugh as he turned around. I relaxed when I realized that the spar was over; Alik had returned to his earlier, laid-back mood.

"Wow!"

"Amazing!" I looked over at the twins, who were leaning over each other gaping at us.

"That was so fast!" One stated.

"Father, why don't you fight like that with us?"

"Shura's right," the other complained, mirroring the pouty look of the first. "You never fight like that with us."

"That's because you guys weren't trained by the best martial artists in the world," Alik reminded them. He then turned to me. "I'll admit, that was pretty good. Besides the whole breaking your hand thing. If that were my real leg, then you would have crippled me."

"I thought you were injured," I sighed, almost whining.

"Nope," he said, smiling. He lifted up the left leg of his pants. "Metal prosthetic. But, I could see how you thought it was an injury. You have a good eye, but you should probably learn how to tell the difference between an injury and a prosthetic. You don't want that," he gestured to my hand, "to happen again."

"No," I said, bringing my hand up to examine it. "I really don't."

"And here I was trying not to hurt you for your first time sparring with me. Turns out you hurt yourself," he joked, laughing.

"That's some heavy metal, though. Hard to believe you walk around with it." He shrugged.

"Green designed it, actually," he admitted, walking over to me. "Light-weight, but strong. It can also hide weapons. Good for being prepared places where they search you for weapons," he admitted shamelessly. "No one searches the leg. You should get Inna to look at that," He added, now closer to me, inspecting my hand.

"No need," I dismissed the offer, taking my good hand and reaching into my back pocket. "I've got it." Alik raised an eyebrow, but didn't insist out of curiosity. Taking out one glove, I put it in my mouth and managed to get it on my good hand. The twins, meanwhile, were circling around, confused by what I was doing. Once the glove was secure, I took a deep breath before quickly setting my fingers back into place, not wincing once. I frowned as I willed flames on the surface of my gloves, once again feeling every part of the finger I was on.

Although I would never admit it to him, I was as fascinated by this new ability as Verde. It's just that it felt extremely weird. Seeing without actually seeing was a strange concept to wrap around my head even when I was the one doing it. I took a shaky breath as I healed the first finger, the pain already borderline unbearable. I made a small sound as I healed the biggest break in the middle finger, it being the worst and therefore most painful. I was pleasantly surprised that I finished healing all my broken fingers faster than I anticipated, and that it took way less flames to do it. Improved gloves indeed.

I looked up to see the three pairs of eyes staring at me; one pair in disbelief, and the other two in pure excitement.

"If I break Shura's arm, will you heal it?" Sasha asked, bouncing up in front of my face, close enough to make me step back.

"If I break Sasha's leg will you heal it?" Shura asked next, pushing their sibling out of the way.

"….. no." I decided that for now, that would be the best answer, and the answer that would lead to the least broken body parts. I made a note to ask Zhanna later what was up with her family and wanting to break body parts.

"Impressive," Alik allowed, completely ignoring his children's outburst and the fact that they were now bickering over who got to break what. "Can I see your hand?" I nodded and held it out to him. He examined the fingers, lightly touching them and having me bend them once or twice. "What were you doing before you touched the skin?" He asked, "When you were hovering over it."

"I was… seeing what was broken… what had to be fixed," I attempted to explain. He hummed thoughtfully.

"Zhanna mentioned something about you being able to heal, but I didn't think it would be this accurate, or fast. This ability will be very useful in the field."

"In the field?" I repeated.

"Yes," He looked away from my fingers, focusing back on me. "You have natural talent, Chiavarone. You're a natural born assassin."

"I am?" I repeated. He nodded.

"We should go show Inna this," He commented, dropping the subject that I was obviously still stuck on.

"What do you mean natural born assassin?" He looked back at me, surprised.

"What? No one's ever told you?" I shook my head. He scoffed, shaking his head as well. "Why else would two Arcobalenos spend their time training you if you didn't have potential to be something great? Why would Green spend his time inventing those gloves for you if you didn't have any potential? It isn't luck that's for sure." I blinked, not having thought of this at all.

"I just never saw myself as… talented." He snorted.

"Zhanna wouldn't have brought you here of all places if you weren't," Alike stated, walking passed his bickering children. "She knows you have it in you; it's just matter of pulling it out." I sighed, moving to follow him.

"I sure hope Zhanna's right."

* * *

><p>The woman made her way through the woods to her destination at a leisurely pace, easily picking up the strong trace of lightning flames, and the lesser, weaker traces of storm and rain. Although she was close enough to hear yelling, she still kept her sensing sharp, keeping track of the other one that was on the way. She smirked as she felt an angry spike in storm flames, then a pained yell. Erasing her presence completely, she decided it was time to ruin the interrogation going on just up ahead.<p>

"I only need one person to torture," Gamma drawled, looking down at the Japanese teenager that stupidly got in his way. "I have no use fo- gah!" Gamma drew back immediately, stepping away from Yamamoto immediately. Gokudera glanced at Yamamoto, as confused as the other two, staring at the knife embedded in their interrogators fingers. Gamma angrily ripped the knife away from his injured hand and threw it on the ground.

"This is a pretty shitty interrogation you have going on here," a voice drawled as a figure stepped out of the shadows of the trees, revealing her enormous killing intent. "I almost expected more." Gamma's expression wavered momentarily before he gathered himself once more.

"Of all people… I didn't expect for someone like you to come," He muttered, a bead of sweat rolling down his face. "…. boss of the Giegue Family." Zhanna smiled widely, but as always, especially to her enemies, it looked more like a snarl, the scars of her face highlighting the terror she was emitting even more.

"Enough with these bullshit formalities," the woman sneered, picking the knife up off the ground as she stepped in between Gamma and the guardians.

"We gonna dance, or what?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I love that even though they haven't actually known each other for that long, Cloud naturally feels like she's known Zhanna forever. Why is it that my character always makes lovely friends with the violent, insane ones? The good thing about that, though, is that those relationships are organic. I still can't believe the relationship she has with Bel, which wasn't even planned. it just happened. Like a chemical explosion, which is an accurate description.**

**Anyway, heeeey, I'm back! Sorry? Yeah, sorry. I'm just going to jump ahead into the future arc becAUSE I GOT IT ALL PLANNED OUT NOW BITCHES. Which, that is what I was doing for a majority of the hiatus. The other stuff was life and personal. But the point is, I'm back, and I will begin work on the next chapter as soon as I post this (that was just a good place to stop). Told you guys that Zhanna would be important. **

**IMPORTANT: Another reason for the long hiatus, was that I sent back and fixed all the older chapters. Long time readers (I love you all), you might want to go back to see somethings I added, because there's going to be an important thing that'll come up way later. I added dimension to the mother and father, and stuff like that, so check it out if you want, if not, you can always ask me if it happens to come up. Overall, I mainly just added a lot of angst. AAAAAANGSSSST. **

**Also, I'd like to acknowledge a review that said that Lussaria was a transsexual woman. I looked into it, just to make sure, because I would hate to be using incorrect pronouns, but I couldn't find any canonical evidence. For now, unless I or someone finds canon evidence, I'll continue to use male pronouns. For these types of thing, I plan to stick to canon (although I could see that as a very plausible head-canon).**

**Hm, somehow, I feel like not that much happened in this chapter. But then, I realized that I put that thing in, and you guys are going to kill me.**

**Anyone pick up all my jokes about killing Cloud in some of my review responses. Because I 'joked' about it. A lot. Ha. I'm hilarious. And i kind of had this planned from the beginning... I'm an awful person. **

**Review Responses:**

**Allykrau:** I barely remember anything form when I was on meds, man, but I can say for sure that it was hilarious for the people around me. Thanks for the love! Sorry it took so long!

**Frost-Sparrow:** (gah, still love your username) Thanks for the review and for thinking it was deep and hilarious! Don't worry, we'll see Cloud drunk eventually ;) Well, she's already gotten into some pretty deep shit… you know, with her being dead. She dead….. Yay! Future Arc!

**Memory25:** (AHHHH, I'M STILL FANGIRLING) Ahem. Thanks! I'm trying to get back on the roll again, but life's a bitch, you know? Thanks for the review!

**Empressofthedead:** Here's another update, you know, about a year later! Yay! And are you sure it's Byakuran? Especially after this chapter? Are you suuuuure? Thanks for offering to beta! Sorry, I've been busy, but I was planning to work things out with betas after I get rolling without chapter again. Thanks, doll!

**Uniquemangalover:** THANK YOU SO MUCH LOVELY THANKS FOR ANSWERING THE QUESTION. YOU'RE AMAZING.

**SphereShadow:** Thanks for the love, and for the review!

**Chibi-no-baka:** Thanks so much! Thank you for the review.

**Pandakat312:** Sorry, pretty sure I failed that update soon part…. Whoops. But I shall keep going. Thanks for the inspiration and the review!

**XxSaphirezxxX:** I hope you patiently waited long enough, for I am trash for not updating in so long. At least I redid the earlier chapters. Thanks for the advice! I always love it when you reivew! Sorry for the wait and I hope you liked this chapter! You's a doll!

**Synethys**: Aw, thanks! And thank you for the review, lovely person!

**RikiNo (Guest):** Ah, that makes me so happy that you read it in a day! Yeah, I sometimes do that too, where I start reading a fanfic, thinking it's new one, then get to a part where I go "hey, this is really familiar" and then, it hits me. If you're old then I'm ancient. Thanks for the review!\

(Chapter 29): Ah, I want to go to all these places you guys are talking about! Thanks for reviewing again!

**WinterStormArt:** Ah, Thailand! Sounds amazing, I want to go! I want to go places! I wish we had a place to buy stuff like that around here, but then again, I'd be broke if there were. Sigh. Thanks for the review.

**Godrik55:** Illusion battles are overrated staring contests fought by drama queens, spread the word. And the training has begun! Muahaha! Thanks for the review!

**Harmonic Bunny:**

(Chapter 4): I know, I'm hilarious, aren't I?

**Brightcloud0915:** Here's the next chapter! Sorry, it took so long. Thanks for the offer, amazing person, and thanks for the review!

**Chieri Sono:** The sad part is that so much time has passed since you posted this review. I'M SORRY, FORGIVE ME. But thanks for reminding and motivating my sorry ass. Thanks for the review, lovely!

**Scarlet rose white:** Here's the update, sorry it took so long! Thanks so much for the review, lovely person!

** .Unique: **You sure it might be Byakuran after this chapter. Are you really suuuure. That sounds like an awesome place that I also wish I could go to! And sorry, the omake will have to wait, but it will come eventually… sometime. Yeah. Thanks for reviewing!

**Rinnu500:** Aw, thanks! I love you being awesome and reviewing!

**Otakurose16:** Thanks for the offer and doe the review! I'll look into after I get rolling on these chapters. Thanks, lovely!

**Sky Lime (Guest):** Aw, thanks! Here's the future arc, and thanks for the review!

**RaNDoem:** Ah, we have another shipper! Is it bad that I'm starting to ship them now too? Can I do that? Can I pick a side in this? Hm. Thanks for the review, lovely!

**VanillaMilkshake18:**

(Chapter 24): I like you. I'm keeping you. No, but seriously, I love it when people point out stuff like this, reading in between the lines. Thanks for the review!

(chapter 2): Eventually, yes, but not until later, after all this shit happens. Again, I'm keeping you. I've adopted you. Thanks for the review!

**Guest:**

(Chapter 14): Same. SAME.

(Chapter 15): I probably torture Dino too much in this, but I'm glad you're enjoying it.

(Chapter 17): Ah, yes. Presenting Cloud Chiavarone; the queen of insults.

(Chapter 25): Thanks for pointing that out! I went back and changed most of the gods to something else anyway, but I'll be sure to use than if the need arises. Thanks so much for the correction and the review!

(Chapter 8): Thanks for the love! I made a note up above about it, and don't worry, you're not rude at all! I just want to make sure I'm using the correct pronouns.

(Chapter 28): Thanks for the love! Here's the update (ignore that it's late, please)!

Thanks for the reviews!

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS AND SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! **

**Question:**

**Favorite Quote?**

**If you've noticed, I've put a quote at the top of each chapter now. The quote is chosen specifically for each chapter because I am a quote hoarder and I realized I had a bunch of quotes that were/are going to be relevant to this story/Cloud. Sometimes, the quote will hint at the ending of the chapter, like in the where Bel got hurt at the end of. So, quotes have been on my mind. **

**My favorite quote is: **

**"We understand so much. But the Sky behind those light – Mostly void, Partially stars – That sky reminds us we don't understand even more."**

**-WTNV**

**Now that Korra's ended (INSERT INCOMPREHENSIBLE SOBBING) Welcome to Night Vale is the last ongoing thing left that I'm obsessed with, and this quote is important to me. Seriously, I want to get "Mostly void, Partially stars" tattooed on my body. So, what quotes do you guys like?**

**-Klu**


	31. How Actions Speak

**Chapter 31: How Actions Speak**

**I don't own KHR.**

* * *

><p><strong>"We are men of action. Lies do not become us."<strong>

**-William Goldman (Westley: The Princess Bride)**

* * *

><p><em>'That is impressive.' <em>

"Thanks," I said, pulling my gloves off and stowing them away in my back pockets once again. Unlike her niece and children, Inna had used the more practical approach of simply making a small cut on herself to test my healing abilities. I looked over to see the twins still sitting on the couch, playing their new favorite game; what broken body part would hurt the most if Cloud healed it?

"A broken leg would totally hurt more than a broken arm, Shura!"

"No way, a broken arm would be worse," Sasha shot back. I glanced over to see Zhanna's eye twitching.

"If you two don't fucking shut up, I'm going to rip your mouths off," She snarled, glaring down at the two. "Then we'll see how much that hurts to heal." They blinked up their cousin, unfazed by her threats. They turned towards each other, with smiles in their faces.

"I bet reattaching things hurts even more!" The left one chirped, going right back into their game.

"Yeah, but reattaching a leg would be the worst." The left shook their head diligently.

"The arm, Sasha, the arm! I would hate to get my arm reattached by Cloud!" Zhanna clenched her fist, her aura growing so bad that I took a step away from her.

"I thought they were bad when they were younger," she growled, "but they've just gotten worse over the years." Alik laughed, the mood Zhanna was putting off completely going over his head.

"They're still little shits, right Zhanna?" Inna rolled her eyes, and jabbed him harshly in the stomach, causing him to double over. She gave him a meaningful look as he recovered. "Inna's right," he said, after coughing into his fist to compose himself. "We should get back to training, Cloud." I nodded, perhaps a little too quickly, not knowing how to react to the family.

"As far as hand-to-hand goes," Alik began, crossing his arms, "all you need is to gain is experience. I can't help much you there, but I can teach you how to use every weapon you come across." I raised an eyebrow.

"You can?" I repeated. "Every single weapon?" He shrugged.

"That, or we can come close enough. There are too many types of hand held weapons for one person to master all of them, of course, but although no weapon is the same, they all fall under similar categories. I'm going to familiarize you with every category I know. You'll master a weapon a day." My eyebrows shot up, causing Zhanna and Alik to laugh. "Were you expecting less? I told you, expectations are dangerous," Alik reminded me. "And I know you're able to do it, unlike some…" he side-eyed Zhanna, who let out an angry huff and turned away.

"My specialty is strength," she muttered irritably. "The only weapon I need is my knife."

"So, Zhanna went through the same training?"

_'Most everyone in the family did,'_ Inna typed.

"But they did not fully master them, unless it was their specialty," Alik explained further. "Every assassin should know how to use or at least be familiar with every weapon they come across. Even if they don't know how to use a weapon the _right_ way, they should still be able to use the weapon in some way. This what you're going to achieve, Cloud," Alik finished. "At least, that's my part of your training."

"Then," I turned to Inna, "are you training me as well?" She nodded, then held up her PDA.

_'I'll be working you out when Alik is not training you with weapons,'_ it read. She retracted it and typed again. _'Also, during our daily runs in the forest, we'll work on your sniping. This will be done every day.'_

"Sniping in Inna's true specialty," Alik commented, wrapping an arm around his wife's waist and pulling her closer to him. I smiled, marveling at level of cuteness they portrayed thanks to their height levels.

"And I've also graciously volunteered to help with working you out," Zhanna inputted.

"Is it because you suck at weapons?" I teased, elated with the fact that I now have something to hold over her. She frowned, glaring at me.

"It's actually funny how completely opposite the two of you are," Alik noted. "In everything, really. When we trained Zhanna as a child, her problem was not holding back and learning how to pull her punches. Meanwhile, Cloud needs to discover her inner ruthlessness, a trait where Zhanna is nowhere near lacking."

"Hell yeah," Zhanna agreed, taking it as a compliment.

"What do you mean?" I questioned Alik.

"You know exactly where to hit to take someone down," Alik explained with a flick of his hand. "You know how to cripple them, how to kill them easily, and yet you hesitate to do so. That hesitation will cost you your life," He concluded in a serious tone.

"Noted," I said shakily. Inna noticed my mood easily and was quick to reassure me.

_'That doesn't mean you have to kill them, Cloud.'_ She then quickly typed something else and presented to me. _'You need ruthlessness to let your enemies be aware that you can easily kill them, but still possess the mercy to let them live. That is what power is. That is what strikes fear in your enemies.'_

"Did you tell her about our part yet?" I almost jumped as one of the twins leaned on my shoulder, popping out from behind me.

"Yeah, you can't forgot about us," the other chirped from my opposite side, leaning on me as well, mirroring their sibling.

"You're right, it's impossible to," Zhanna muttered darkly, "because they're so fucking annoying."

"Shura and Sasha will be teaching you how to conceal your presence," Alike informed me. I looked between the two widely smiling twins.

"We're going to have fun, Cloud!" The left one chipped.

"Yeah, lots of fun!" The right chirped.

"I'm going to have fun wringing your necks if you two little shits don't shut the fuck up." The twins giggled, but didn't say another word, not wanting to test their cousin further.

"I can't believe they listened," I commented. Zhanna scoffed, crossing their arms.

"They may be annoying shits, but they're smart," Zhanna admitted gruffly.

"They know it's dangerous to seriously piss me off."

* * *

><p>"You Millefiore have really pissed me off," Zhanna stated, standing between Gamma and the battered guardians. "And that's a fucking feat."<p>

"Is it?" Gamma asked, flexing his injured hand slowly, and regaining his composure from being startled by the boss's arrival. "I've heard differently. The temperamental youngest child of the Gieuge, who was forced to become the head after the death of all her older siblings. That's you, right?"

"The Giegue…" Gokudera muttered, managing to prop himself up. His eyes widened as he recognized the woman's scarred face. "Wait, you're that woman from the ring battles!"

"Zhanna…" Yamamoto managed weakly, remembering the name. "You're the older Zhanna…" The woman turned her head, barely looking back at the two.

"Smoking bomb," she addressed Gokudera in a cold tone. "Take the other brat and move away from here. No arguments." He shuddered, feeling the small amount of killing intent she aimed toward him so he would follow the order. He shakily pushed himself up, and began to make his way over to Yamamoto. Gamma sneered, readying his cue to stop them.

"Do you really think I'll just let them slip past me?"

"Do you really think I care about what you have to say? You should just shut the fuck up," Zhanna spat back. "I hate your kind the most," she admitted darkly.

"And what kind is that?" Gamma asked smoothly, moving his hand to retrieve a box.

"The talkers," she replied. "You types are annoying little pricks."

"Aren't you the one responding? It takes two to keep a conversation going, after all," Gamma countered. Her eyes darted to the ground at the slightest movement, and she watched as a small snake slivered through, right next to the assassin, who let loose a wicked grin as it followed after Gokudera and Yamamoto, who Gamma saw had not gotten far with their injuries.

"Ah, I was just waiting," she said, starting to spin the knife in her hands. Gamma's eyes narrowed.

"Waiting?"

"To spill your fucking guts," she sneered, moving to take a step forward. Gamma moved back instantly, using his boots to go air-born and lighting his ring, then inserting it in the box.

"I'll end this quickly," Gamma allowed, glancing over to see that the storm guardian had fallen under the weight of the other, too weak to continue, much to Gamma's pleasure. Billiards came out of the box, teeming with lightning flames and began floating around him. "A merciful death for the Boss of the Giegue, unlike the death of your siblings." The billiards soared high above her. "An instant death by electrocution," Gamma called out, activating his electric cutter with a smirk. However, that smirked dropped instantly when he heard laughing coming from the person he was currently electrocuting to death.

"Are you really that much of a dumbass?" Zhanna called. His eyes narrowed as the electricity stopped. He took in the details around her, the small spikes of green jutting out from her clothes every now and then.

"Impossible," he muttered, having only come to one conclusion. "What type of technology do you have…"

"Technology has nothing to do with it," Zhanna said, stepping forward casually, as if he hadn't just used one of his most powerful attacks on her. He quickly activated shot plasma before she could get closer, sending the billiards flying at her, covered in lightning flames.

"Don't even try to dodge these. It's im-"

"Who said I wanted to dodge them?" His eyes widened as she reached up with one hand and caught one of the billiards, then squeezing so that it merely shattered in her hand.

"The hell?" His eyes narrowed as he ceased the movement of the rest of his billiards in order to not have more destroyed. Looking closely at her hand, he realized that the spikes of green flames weren't coming from the remains of his billiard, but from the scarred hand that was holding it. "You're coating your hand… with pure lightning flames?" She looked up at him in a bored manner after he made this revelation.

"You finally figure it out, dumbass?"

"That's how you survived the electrocution…" he muttered, a sense of dread washing over him as he realized what kind of opponent he was facing. "You covered yourself in your own flames… it wasn't your clothes you had covered," he extracted his early assumption. "It was your skin. That's basically suicide. I haven't heard of anyone reckless enough to do that, especially with the nature of lightning flames."

"You should try it sometime," Zhanna suggested with a smirk. "Hurts like hell the first few times," she admitted, "and I got a hella lot more scars from it, but when I see the terrified faces of fuckers like you…" she trailed off, slipping into a snarl-like smile, "it makes it all worth it."

"You're a monster," he concluded.

"And I'll take the title gladly. Now," She flexed her fingers, lightning flames chattering to life on her bare hand. "Those brats should be a safe distance away." Gamma moved to open his animal box, taking the fight a lot more seriously now that he understood his opponent more. Seeing this, she kicked off from the ground behind her, almost shattering it completely. She was behind him in a second, and delivered a crippling kick to his back, sending him crashing into the ground below. She landed harshly, but was completely unfazed.

"I don't use my flames in the conventional sense," she explained as she stalked over to Gamma, who was attempting to weakly push himself up out of the crater she had kicked him into. Without admitting it out loud, she deemed it impressive that he survived the attack, noticing how he used his billiards to lessen the impact he made with the ground. "I don't enjoy using weapons, frankly, because I'm not very good with them. So, instead of using silly little boxes and toys like everyone else, I rely on my own strength when it comes to flames." She stood over him, and he looked up at her with hatred in his eyes.

"If my body can't handle my flames, then I don't deserve to use them," she recited, igniting a large amount of lightning flames in her bare hand as a prime example. "When I punch you with this, it'll channel through you and every living thing around us."

"That means you might hurt those brats as well," he challenged.

"The brats? They're long out of my range by now."

"The hell are you talking about?" He spit out. "They're right over th-"

"Illusion," she answered simply. "You only saw what you wanted to see." He looked at her, astonished.

"But, your file… you just have lightning flames! You're lying!" She sneered and placed a foot on the side of his head, pressing down.

"Dumbass," she muttered. "In a crisis like this, even people like me have to get help." He scowled as she pressed harder on the side of his head. "You're lucky," she growled, bending down closer to him. "You get to feel my flames first hand." Her eyes widened in excitement and she brought her now-fisted hand violently on his back, sending a wave of her lightning flames through his body and into the area around it. The ground split around then, and the bark on nearby trees cracked. It was silent all too fast. Zhanna scoffed, roughly rolling Gamma's body over with her foot.

"You're lucky you have lightning flames," she muttered to him. "Over wise that would have killed you dead. But," she turned, beginning to walk away, "I'm feeling merciful today. I'll let you live with that humiliation, for now. Being beaten by your own pure element," she spat. "How weak. You don't deserve to be killed by these flames." She glanced around at the now, ruined landscape, frowning.

"Now, to find out where that bitch hid those brats… hm?" She cocked her head, then grinned widely, turning to the approaching figures, one of which was emitting a dangerous aura.

"You're late, _brat_," she greeted the Cloud guardian, who met her smile with a blood thirsty smirk, anger teeming behind his eyes.

"Of course it was you who got in the way of my prey," he said coldly. Kusakabe sighed behind him, knowing that the two of them meeting never ended well.

"Get in way?" Zhanna barked. "Fuck that! I just beat you to it! You're losing your edge, Hibari." He scoffed, then took in the ruined surroundings.

"Where are Yamamoto Takeshi and Gokudera Hayato?"

"Somewhere around here," she replied, casually waving a hand in the air.

"You mean you don't know where they are?" Kusakabe restated.

"I'm not their fucking babysitter. I gave that job to someone else," she explained, her mood immediately turning sour. "I just have to find where the bitch is lurking now." Hibari narrowed his eyes, making an accurate assumption of who she was talking about just by the change of her mood. He took on an annoyed expression as well, sharing the same opinion.

"Eh? Is that… older Hibari-san?!" Zhanna and Hibari barely spared Tsuna and Lal Mirch a glance as they stepped out from a bush nearby. Lal's eyes quickly scanned the area, widening as they landed on the unconscious Gamma. Zhanna smiled widely again after noticing where Lal was looking.

"Made nice work of the bastard, didn't I?" She boasted proudly.

"Wait, you're…" Tsuna trailed off, recognizing the scarred woman.

"The boss of the Giegue, Ursa," Lal completed for him.

"Skip the formalities," Zhanna said, beginning to walk. "I can sense trouble coming our way. We need to find the sword brat and smoking bomb quickly and get them to a safe place."

"Wait, do you mean Gokudera and Yamamoto?" Tsuna asked, suddenly worried. "What happened to them?"

"What do you mean find them?" Lal question, her eyes narrowing.

"Just let me fu-"

"Zhan-chan! Kyo-chan!" Tsuna stepped back, suddenly startled by the enormous amount of irritation radiating off them. "Long time no see!"

Tsuna looked towards the sound of the voice, feeling relieved immediately when he spotted both his friends, supporting each other as they made their way towards him. His eyebrows burrowed in confusion, however, when he focused on the person with them, not recognizing her at all.

"It was almost too easy to trick that guy, right Zhan-chan?" The dark-skinned woman cooed as she approached them, sending a wink at Zhanna who almost growled in response. "They got out of the way no problem, and it was even easier hiding them. I already handled throwing the radar off to cover our tracks and sealed the rings as well, Kyo-chan," she addressed Hibari, who was intensely glaring at her.

"Fine," Hibari said curtly, turning on his heel. "We'll head through our own entrance," he informed the group, walking in the direction of the shrine.

"He's pissed…" Gokudera noted quietly, the three friends talking among themselves.

"So is she…" Tsuna muttered, slightly terrified and nodding to Zhanna.

"I wonder why?" Yamamoto mused as Tsuna stood in between them, helping both of his friends.

"Ah, I'm afraid that's my fault." Tsuna almost jumped out of his skin, having completely forgot about the mysterious women, and then wondering how that was even possible. "I'm quite hated around their type," she admitted, laughing lightly. The three gaped at her as she merrily skipped ahead, seeing that they were now approaching the shrine.

"Who the heck is that?" Tsuna whispered to them urgently.

"She said her name is Dayita," Gokudera said, still suspiciously staring after her, "and she's an illusionist. Forgive me, tenth, but that's all the information I could gather about her."

"She's strange," Yamamoto added his two-cents. Meanwhile Dayita had made her way up near Hibari, who gave her a hard look as he pulled out a mist ring.

"Your mere presence annoys me enough as it," he stated, still glaring at her. "If you make a single comment about this, I will not hesitate to bite you to death."

"Now, now, Kyo-chan!" his eye barely twitched as she continued to use the name he had told her repeatedly not to use in the past, "For once, I'm not here to annoy you. Me and Zhan-chan are here to talk about an important matter!"

"You know for a fucking fact that I wouldn't be dealing with her unless it was important," Zhanna stated as they walked into the illusion of the wall, ignoring the outbursts of shock behind them as they did so. His eyes narrowed, having already come to this conclusion the moment Zhanna said that the two women were actually working together.

"Get to the point quickly," he commanded, not even bothering to look at Dayita. "I would like to spend the least amount of time as possible crowding with the likes of you two." He expected an irritating comeback like usual, but realized how serious they were about talking to him the moment Dayita's smile dropped and she slipped in a professional demeanor, all traces of her earlier personality gone.

"I'm here to get her rings back from you."

* * *

><p>"How familiar are you with swords?"<p>

"Somewhat familiar," I guessed, remembering the numerous sword practices Squalo had subjected me to after the one time I had decided that learning how to fight with a sword looked 'fun'.

"We'll brush through blades today and tomorrow then," Alik decided, picking up one of the swords form the wall, and then quickly throwing it towards me. I caught it with ease. "You know, Cloud," he started as he picked another sword out for himself, "It's a good thing you can heal yourself so quickly. It will really speed up this training."

"How so?" I asked, testing the weight of the sword in my hand.  
>"My method of training is considered quite… lethal," he admitted with a smile. I raised an eyebrow, giving him a puzzled look.<p>

"… how so?" I repeated, quieter and more cautious.

"It often takes weeks, even months for a usual trainee to pass a weapon," Alik explained casually as he strove forward, spinning the sword in his hand with skill and ease. "And that's because in this training, I force you to master the weapon, simply because your life depends on it. Typically, the trainee is on the brink of death by the end of the first session. Then, when they've healed enough to fight me again, I almost kill them again and the process is repeated until they're proficient with the weapon and can move on to the next." The smiled he ended the sentence with a smile that almost sent chills down my spine. I thought over how many others he used that smile on, right before he sent them to the brink of death all for the sake of training; training that was worth the end results. That is, if I even survived it.

"But you're lucky, Cloud," he continued. "We can move faster in your training, because you can heal yourself so quickly. This is where the flame conservation training will be coming from. Either learn how to properly use and conserve your flames in a real fight, or die." I nodded and raised my sword, actually glad for Squalo's training for once. Alik's smile dropped and his demeanor changed once again, like it had on our first spar. I held back a grimace, remembering how well that ended. And now, with sharp weapons in our hands, instead of breaking a few fingers there's the danger of losing some. Or worse, I could found out whether it was Shura or Sasha that was right and pick the winner of their game.

I went after Alik first, sword in hand and my heart on my sleeve. I was going to survive this training, I convinced myself as we parried. Squalo's lessons and words ran through my head, and I grew extremely grateful for him as those lessons and words paid off beautifully. Alik's demeanor remained the same, but I saw a spark in his eyes as we fought. I pushed forward, performing one the first things Squalo had taught me. I blinked as Alik's sword went flying out of his hand, surprised that my disarming move had worked. Relaxing was my mistake. The next thing I knew, a metal leg was lodged into my side, sending me the same direction has the sword.

"I really hate that leg of yours," I coughed out, holding my side while looking at the damage with my flames. I grimaced, feeling multiple broken ribs.

"I find it comes in handy," Alik disclosed humorlessly. "Switch weapons. Get up and grab my sword. We're not stopping." Straightening myself, I quickly and painfully healed my ribs, the pain right up there with healing my fingers, and possibly worse. It was hard to tell though, I thought as I retrieved the other blade, and tossed my old one to Alik. I tended not to dwell on it too much after all, seeing how unpleasant it was. But, I considered the benefits of fast healing to outweigh the detriments.

"You've had training," Alik noted, as we started on the sixth or so type of blade (I didn't really bother counting, and only focused on completing this training). I hefted the dual swords and swung them a few times, testing them. "I didn't pin you as a sword fighter."  
>"I'm not, really," I corrected him. "I've just had a few lessons. Well, forced lessons," I added, letting out a small sigh.<p>

"Ah? Who taught you?"

"Superbi Squalo." He whistled, impressed.

"That loud guy from the Varia?" I almost laughed at the description, finding it extremely accurate. "He's a hell of a swordsman. Did you work with dual blades?" I shook my head.

"No, only with one or two handed swords and rapiers; things like that."

"Then, this should be interesting. These are my favorite; they're the weapons I usually use professionally," Alik admitted, only causing me more anticipation for his attack. After the first mistake of letting my guard down, I had done well not to let it happen again. "Let's see how you do."

I did not do well, if the two gashes on my side and my neck were any hint. I managed to fend Alik off with my remaining sword, the other long gone from my hand minutes into the spar. My unoccupied hand went to my neck first, where I was losing the most blood. I panted heavily, the injuries I had been healing throughout the lesson adding up and draining me. My vision blurred, and in a second Alik cut me down, leaving another gash in my leg. I tumbled, barely bothering to catch myself.

"You have ten minutes to heal yourself," Alik informed me, kneeling down to look me in the eyes. "Then we start again, still using dual swords. We don't stop today until either you disarm me, or you die." I barely nodded in comprehension, already healing the injury on my side.

I was pleased that I was already learning from this experience. To conserve flames, I had taken to never healing a wound completely, sealing it just enough that it stopped bleeding and no longer hindered me from fighting. With this training, I was constantly aware of how many flames I was using. I was covered in small wounds, but neglected healing them. The dual swords had proven to be my worst blade so far. I needed all the energy I could gather if I was going to disarm my trainer with them. Alik raised an eyebrow as I rose, ready to confront him again.

"Done already? You seem eager," he smirked. "You really want to keep going? You'll die if you continue like this." I nodded, not confident, but determined.

"Definitely," I replied. "I'm not dying anytime soon."

* * *

><p>He didn't trust the woman sitting across from him and he highly doubted he ever fully will. She was an illusionist, which already gives him even more reason to hate her. Although, her personality in general completely pissed him off. She was a snake; manipulative, always changing, never constant.<p>

Hibari Kyoya hated Koenig Dayita.

And although he found her chipper, immature personality that she usually took when around him extremely irritating, it was the current personality she portrayed in this moment to be the one he hated the most. She showed her true face in times like these, revealing her to be the snake she is.

Another reason for his complete hatred toward the Indian was the unique way in which she used her illusions. As opposed to common illusionist, whose skills are usually based on the ridiculousness and extravagance of the mirage, Dayita shows her abilities in a sly way, slowing enveloping her opponent in an illusion completely made up of what they wanted to see. It often reminded him of how a snake will poison its prey, paralyzing it, then slowly choking the carcass down its throat, eventually crushing their prey with the snake's strong muscles. However, because Dayita's gift of reading and understanding people so easily, and the uniqueness of her technique, she is also one of the most successful illusionist Hibari had come across. Of course, with this said, it's dangerous to assume that the woman was not capable of illusions of extravagant proportions. Hibari was a smart man, after all, and he knew very well not to underestimate this snake.

He would hate to admit that she had fooled him with her illusions on multiple occasions, and so he has never admitted it to anyone (never mind that more than half of those occasions were because he had attacked her first; it was obviously her fault for provoking him). Luckily, for his pride, only three people knew of these instances, two of those people being himself and the Indian, the third being the person that he could easily put the blame on for introducing him to the illusionist (if Zhanna knew of these instances, he would never be able to hear the end of it, making it crucial that she never find out). However with the valuable connections Dayita had and the information he received from her, he deemed that meeting the illusionist was a necessary evil of sorts. It was also extremely helpful that he had the person that introduced them to act as a middle-man during many of the exchanges between himself and Dayita, managing to keep both parties under control and semi-reasonable.

However, he reminded himself, frowning slightly, the person who introduced them to each other was now dead. Which brought him back to the matter at hand.

"She's dead," he reaffirmed out loud, glancing coldly between the two women in front of him.

"You don't have to fucking remind us," the Russian snapped at him, irritably. It was good that Kusakabe was with the others explaining the Foundation in Hibari's stead, for if he were in this room with the three of them, the intensity would suffocate the man.

"There is no reason for me to give you the rings," Hibari continued, ignoring Zhanna's lashing. Dayita's face remained coy and professional, despite his blatant refusal.

"The importance of the situation evades you, Hibari," the illutionists stated. "Zhanna has already agreed to give me her box weapons."

"I haven't fucking agreed yet," Zhanna barked. Hibari raised a slender eyebrow at the assassin who met his look with a hard glare. "The only reason I agreed to fucking come is to see if you were lying about your info," Zhanna addressed Dayita. Looking back at her. "Now that I've seen the brats for myself, there's only one fucking reason why you would need her rings and boxes." Hibari's eyes narrowed, immediately seeing where she was going.

"Do you know where the body is?"

"I cannot give you any information at the moment. My deepest apologies, of course."

"Liar," Hibari stated.

"If you won't give us anything, then we'll just beat it out of you," Zhanna growled, lightning flames sprouting from her closed fist.

"You both are well aware of how easily I can escape," Dayita reminded the two coolly. "It will only end with both of you angry, and resort to me having to take what I need by my own means." She looked between the two, making sure to meet their eyes. "I'm being polite, asking you to give me the items. Would you rather to use my usual tactics that both of you despise?" Zhanna growled, looking away from the woman angrily. Hibari's face darkened, irritated as well.

"This is a delicate situation. Very few have all the information, and even then, the situation is evolving and changing; we don't even know if we'll be able to achieve our goal when the time comes. But for now, I need you to comply. She would have wanted you t-"

"Don't you fucking dare try to use that," Zhanna muttered darkly, interrupting the illusionist. Dayita blinked, then looked away, genuine bits of shame showing in her eyes.

"That was out of line," she admitted.

"Fuck yeah it was." Hibari remained silent during their exchange, knowing that if he spoke, it would only lead to more irritation. He sighed, putting his hand into his pocket, and bringing out a small bag.

"Here. If I give you these, then you'll leave me alone." Dayita recovered quickly, taking the bag from him and opening it.

"They're all here..." she muttered, her eyes scanning over the three rings. "I'm surprised you haven't used them, with the way you battle."

"They would have broken," he answered simply.

"Of course." His eye twitched at her tone. She turned to Zhanna. The assassin huffed, then put two box weapons in between them.

"Fine. You better fucking tell me what the deal is as soon as possible, bitch."

"If all goes well," Dayita said, putting the boxes with the rings after inspecting them, "then you'll get these back. If it doesn't go well, and the worst doesn't come," she said, rising, "then you'll understand soon enough. Thank you for your cooperation. I truly appreciate it." The Indian then disappeared with a wave of her hand, sparking annoyed auras from the remaining occupants of the room. Zhanna snarled, glaring at the spot the illusionist was last.

"Fucking liar."

* * *

><p>"And here I thought you couldn't get any more stupid," Zhanna scoffed. I sent her a glare, not being able to talk back to her at the moment. "You really are a dumbass," she continued, crossing her arms and leaning on the back of the couch. "I can hardly believe you did it actually. I thought I was the reckless one…"<p>

"Budft if woped," I said through the rag I was biting down on, finishing up healing my arm. Zhanna raised an eyebrow at my pronunciation. "But," I repeated, smiling weakly. "It worked."

"Still stupid," Zhanna dismissed. "Who the fuck sacrifices their own arm to disarm somebody? He almost took it off, and he would have if you hadn't knocked the sword out of his hand."

"Almost," I repeated. "He almost took my arm off"

"Don't be too hard on her, Zhanna," Alik chided from the other side of the couch next to Inna who had one of her long arms draped over his shoulders. "I thought it was pretty interesting." Inna gave him a look. He laughed. "What are you talking about, Inna? I'm not encouraging her." Inna sighed and shook her head.

"You've passed blades with good marks," Alik moved on, "but you still have to work on your hesitation. As you've noticed, I'm taking every chance you give me to take you down, unless you do it first."

"That reminds me," I glanced down at Alik's now swollen wrist. "I need to heal that too." Alik blinked, then glanced down at his wrist, as if he forgot about it. He chuckled lightly.

"You really do have the perfect personality for a healer," He commented, then developed a more serious tone. "You have a lot of potential. Don't let your personality leak into your fighting. You can be two different people on and off the battlefield," he gestured to himself. "Just look at me! Did you see this cheery face and dazzling personality while fighting? You and me are one of the few," he admitted. "Most everyone else in this business is apathetic enough to not have to hold back their personality when fighting; in fact, most people actually show more of their personality when killing."

"I know the type," I said, frowning as I thought of Bel. I sighed and caved in. "I'll try to not hesitate with my attacks anymore. I guess I could always apologize later," I muttered as an afterthought.

"Apologize? What for?" Zhanna looked over at me, confused.

"For hurting them."

"Why the fuck would you apologize for hurting somebody?"

"…. Because that's what normal people do?" I replied, now confused myself.

"Hm? Really…?" she trailed off with a thoughtful look on her face, as if never having thought of the concept before.

"Tomorrow, we'll move onto pole weapons, then blunt weapons, fist weapons, flexibles, chain weapons and so on and so forth until we're done. We'll skim over long range weapons that require skill like needles and bows, and unique weapons, like fans, near the end. With how quickly you pick up in life or death situations and your healing, we should be able to get through in a little less than a month, actually."

"Really?" I asked, excited, despite how worn out I felt after just the first day.

"Unless you die in the process of course," he reminded me casually, bursting my bubble.

"It's like hell," Zhanna commented on the training me. "I got some of these scars from this training."

"Is that just because you suck at weapons?" I asked, dead-pan. Her eye twitched and she glared down at me.

"Just wait until morning," Zhanna seethed, smirking. "You won't be so snarky then."

"Morning?" I blinked, then looked at Inna. "She's talking about your work outs, right?"

"We'll whip you into shape in no time," Zhanna assured me. "But it might kill you getting there."

"I thought I was already in pretty good shape," I muttered miserably. Zhanna shrugged.

"Eh," she dismissed. My eye twitched.

"What exactly are you getting at?"

"You're twig," she said bluntly.

"Well, compared to you," I pointed you, "yeah. Almost everyone is a twig compared to you." She smiled genuinely.

"Thanks."

"….. that wasn't meant to be taken as a compliment."

* * *

><p>"She's too worn out to appear today," Hannah informed Mukuro as he appeared in the garden that night. "She probably could have shown up, but she insisted on healing her trainer."<p>

"Naturally," Mukuro sighed lightly, not surprised one bit. "She has that annoying quality of always wanting to help others…." He trailed off, giving Hannah a look, and seeing an opportunity arise for him to ask her something he had always wondered. Now that Cloud was absent, he had the perfect opportunity. "That reminds me," he purred, leaning on his trident. "I've been meaning to ask you lately..."

"Why are you helping her?"

Her eyes widened in surprise at the question and her head shot up at him. She glared.

"What do you mean?"

"You clearly don't want to," Mukuro pointed out. "And I sense a strong amount of hatred in you as well. What do you gain for helping Cloud? You and I both know very well that you could easily refuse and would receive no punishment from her. She's weak like that, after all." Hannah looked down at the ground angrily, bringing her knees up to hug them.

"Why do you care?"

"Cloud has become a vital source of information," Mukuro answered casually, "And I don't want to lose that. If you intend to betray her for some reason, I would rather know now so I can deal with it without her knowledge. I doubt she would agree with me doing so," He added menacingly. "But she's not here right now, is she?" She scowled and looked away once more. A minute passed before she spoke again.

"… I don't hate her," she admitted. "Not in the way you think I do. The only thing I hate about her…. is that she's everything I'm not." Mukuro raised an eyebrow, surprised she was opening up to him. She continued, hesitantly. "The reason I'm helping her… it's for me. I'm helping her for myself. What else can I do in here? Rot away until I'm completely forgotten? Live in the back of someone else's head, until I fade away?!" She became emotional as she spoke, almost distraught. The area was affected by this as well, Mukuro noted as he felt the first drops of water, and then the garden was encased in a downpour, forcing him to create an umbrella for himself from his illusions. He could no longer distinguish between the water on the girl's face and the tears.

"I have nothing left," she said miserably. "I just threw them away. It was my fault, I was the one who pushed that fucking button! It's my fault. I thought for so long that I could pin it on her, this girl that I was watching, separate from me and become this completely new person that I knew I could never be. I thought I could put the blame on her, but I couldn't! It was my fault I lost them, and then she comes along and takes that blame away from me! She treats me like a friend and I don't even deserve it! I hate her… why should I watch her become this great person while I sit here rotting away in guilt? I hate myself!" She turned towards him, angrily. Her eyes widened she saw nothing but pity in his eyes. The rain came to a sudden stop, freezing in the air, coming to a complete stand still. She looked away from the illusionist's eyes, guilty, embarrassed.

"I just thought," she whispered quietly, "that if I help her, then I could stop this guilt. It's all my fault, and I'm not even sorry." She clutched her head, tears streaming down her eyes. Mukuro looked down upon this girl, without empathy. "I'm not even sorry," she repeated quietly, having broken down, finally, after so long. He watched hollowly as she continued her quieted collapse.

"So easily broken by the tiniest things," he murmured, the slightest bit of amusement in his voice. "What fragile, sad creatures humans are."

* * *

><p>"Wake up, Cloud!" I sprang into action, startled by the voice and the shape in front of me, grabbing the shape and pulling them into a hold. I blinked as the lights were switched on and I recognized the person I was holding.<p>

"Shura? ...or Sasha?" I tried, looking at the twin under me.

"You're moves are cool as always, Cloud!" They said, smiling up at me. I heard a giggle at the door, and looked over to see the other twin standing in it with their hand over their mouth.

"You got caught by Cloud!"

"It's not my fault! I was concealing my presence, she just moved too fast!" The one I had complained as I released them.

"What do you guys want?" I asked before they could argue further. I sat on the bed and yawned, but they grabbed a hold of my arms, pulling me up.

"No time for sitting down!"

"Mother and Zhanna are waiting for you!"

"We were just sent to wake you up for training."

"I should have known it would be early in the morning," I complained lightly, as they let go of me, seeing that I was now standing. I moved to the corner to retrieve my shoes. "What time is it anyway? Actually," I interrupted them quickly before either could answer, "don't tell me. There's a chance I can convince myself that it's not as early if I don't know the time."

"We'll lead you to them," the twin on my left said, grabbing my arm, carting me out of my temporary bedroom.

"Yeah, and don't bother eating any breakfast," the right added, grabbing my other arm.

"And why is that?" I asked confident I already knew the answer. They smiled widely, then answered me together, giving me a very clear picture of the nature of the workout.

"Because you would just throw it up!"

"Great."

* * *

><p>"When you said we were going to run, I thought you actually, you know, meant <em>run<em>."

_'Of course not. That would be no fun.'_

I read her message with a sad, tired expression. She met it with a coy smile. "Of all things," I continued, "I did not expect a trapeze relay course to be our morning runs." I glanced back up at the various platforms, ropes, and hanging handles, one of which Zhanna was swinging on, making her way towards us. She landed heavily on a platform above me.

"Everything checks out fine, Inna," she called down. "It all supported my weight, so there's no way anything will collapse under that twig."

"You still going on about that?" I muttered, irritated. She smirked down at me.

"Just be glad I was nice enough to inspect before your first run through, brat," she chided. "These tree paths have been here ever since I could remember, for training and so Alik and Inna could keep in touch with their circus days."

"Circus days?" I asked, turning to look an Inna.

_'I'll explain later,'_ she typed quickly. _'For now, let's get started. As an assassin, you should be able to move quickly through any terrain. If you get left behind, you fail. Don't let us out of your sight.' _The moment she placed the device back into her pocket, she started, with me right behind her. I scaled the first tree, finding her easy to follow at first, but as my muscles strained from repeatedly throwing myself towards platforms and jumping up to catch the swinging handles Inna and Zhanna left in their wake, I began to slowly drag behind.

I attempted to distract myself form the burning of my muscles by noticing the gaping difference in the way Zhanna and Inna moved through the course. Naturally, like everything else she does, Zhanna's movement's embodied her personality; strong, heavy jumps that strained on the ropes suspending the handles, and harsh landings that almost shook the trees the platforms were attached too, all while wearing a wild grin on her scarred face.

Inna was the complete opposite and it was nothing less than beautiful and breathtaking to watch. She moved with profession and grace, a vivid and ecstatic attitude around her, with a genuine, soft smile on her face. The movements were natural to her, and I was surprised the first time she flipped in midair, and hooked her legs around the second handle, landing gracefully again with another flip. It was all too clear what Zhanna was talking about earlier.

I made a pained sound, as I barely missed the edge of the platform with my foot, and harshly landed on my knee. I pushed myself up quickly, the two women almost out of sight. As I ignored the futile complaints of my body, I reminded myself once more that I was not doing this for my sake.

I was doing to for my family, and that might be the only thing that was keeping me going.

* * *

><p>"Fuck," I said as I collapsed on the ground. "<em>Fuck<em>," I said louder, dragging out the word, breathing heavily (I said this in Russian, Zhanna's constant cursing rubbing off on me). Inna made giggling motions, and Zhanna laughed.

"Damn. You actually kept up," she congratulated. "If barely. If you had trouble today, it's going to be even more of a bitch tomorrow with even more sore muscles." I groaned loudly in response.

_'Luckily, you have time to rest before we begin our sniping lessons.'_ I read the message Inna held above me, relieved. Inna nodded to Zhanna, who sighed loudly.

"This is the part I hate," she muttered irritably. "See ya," she saluted me, then began making her way down the cliff face we had climbed to reach this point. I laid on the ground for quite some more time after she left, Inna letting me rest. I slowly pushed myself up and looked over at her, signaling her that I was ready. Following her lead, I took my bag off my shoulder and received my sniper rifle. Once we were set up, she held her PDA up to me.

_'Your target today is Zhanna. Every day, we will end up out here and shoot at her. She'll hide in different places and we will take different paths here every day. Since you have rain flames, you'll just be paralyzing her if you manage to hit her. Once we've practiced enough with Zhanna, you'll begin hunting Alik, then me, then the twins until you've successfully taken all of us down.'_

"You don't mind being shot at?" She shook her head.

_'You'll just paralyze body parts. If I was shooting, then I would not be using my family as targets.' _I didn't ask why, a little terrified to find out why she wouldn't want to risk it, and instead looked through my scope, beginning to scout.

As loud and brash as Zhanna was, I didn't think it would be that difficult to hit her.

* * *

><p>Turns out, I was right. The hardest part was carrying her back to the base. A limp Zhanna was not very fun to cart back. It didn't help that Inna saw this as another training opportunity as we jogged back to the base (luckily on the actually ground. There was no way in hell I was going to make it back if we took that route, let alone carry the buff Russian on my back). I almost wished I had shot her mouth as well because of how much she was complaining about this being her least favorite part of my training.<p>

"I swear, Zhanna," I hissed as I lugged her body up the steps, now inside the base and making our way to the living area, "I will drop you right here on these steps if you do not shut up."

"Like fuck you will," she shot back. "You're too soft to leave someone behind." I opened my mouth to argue, then angrily closed it, spending the rest of the walk wallowing in the agony of my poor muscles and dutifully ignoring Zhanna. I dumped her on the couch as soon as I reached it, then immediately plopped down next to her, feeling as if I was about to die from exhaustion. I almost let out an agonized groan when I realized that it was still morning and I had two other training sessions to go through, although I had no idea what the twins had planned for me. Inna gave me an apathetic smile and patted my shoulder.

"Ah, you guys are back," Alik greeted as he waked in through one of the entrances, followed by skipping twins. "I see you had fun," he noted, smiling when he saw me ragged on the couch with an immobilized, pissed looking Zhanna sprawled beside me. Inna moved to meet him, as the twins giggled, spying Zhanna and immediately moving to poke her in her paralyzed state. After leaning down to peck her husband on the lips, Inna held out her PDA to him. He glanced at me after reading it, then smiled lovingly at Inna.

"Kids," he addressed his children, who were busy being growled at by their cousin, "quiet down. It's story time." The twin's eyes lit up.

"Are you telling that story, Father?" one asked, pushing Zhanna's body away from me so they could sit beside me.

"The one about how you and Mother met?" The other completed, taking my other side.

"It's the best love story ever," the first assured me. The other nodded in agreement.

"The best," they affirmed.

"I'm going to ring your fucking necks when these rain flames ware off," Zhanna muttered form the awkward position the twin had pushed her into. I gave Zhanna a look, but made no move to help her. I believed it to be a proper revenge for her 'twig' comments. I turned towards Inna and Alik, who were leaning against the counter, Alik's arm around her waist and Inna's arm around his shoulder, almost holding him to her.

"When Inna was a teenager," Alik began, taking on a proud voice, eyes shining, "She went through a rebellious phase. She was the oldest, with only one other sibling; Zhanna's father. Her being the oldest meant that she was to take the title of boss. However, she did not want this title. And so, Inna ran away. She managed to hide from her own family for a couple of years, and while in hiding, she took on a new identity and joined a circus as a trapeze artist. This particular circus she joined had an extremely handsome knife-thrower. In fact, this particular knife-thrower was so handsome, that Inna fell in love with him im-"

Inna pinched his face harshly, giving him a stern look. He laughed nervously, then corrected himself.

"I joke, of course," he revised his story. "It was the knife thrower that fell in love with Inna at first site," he said, giving his wife a loving smile. "But, Inna's heart was cold and distrusting then, and had not opened up to the knife-thrower yet. And so, the knife-thrower, after many useless attempts to woo her, asked what he could do to get her to give him a chance. She then asked him what he was afraid of most. The knife-thrower truthful replied that he was deathly afraid of heights. She then said to him, that if he really loved her, he could overcome that fear. Only then would the lovely Inna give him a chance. Little did Inna know, however, that the same night, the knife-thrower would attempt to walk a tight rope to prove his love, only to fall, almost killing himself."

The twins gasped dramatically. Zhanna rolled her eyes at them, taking her eyes off of her slowly twitching fingers.

"Oh please, as if you haven't heard this story a th-" The twins shushed her immediately, then turned back to their father with wide eyes. Zhanna looked annoyed, but remained quiet, probably still waiting to clobber them.

"I lost a lot of things in that fall," Alik continued. "The most important thing probably being my leg. I might have landed in the worst place actually, considering how mangled it was. Thinking back, I could have easily avoided losing my leg with a safety net, but one wasn't up…." He trailed off, then Inna bumped him with her hip, getting him back on subject. "Ah, right. Inna saw what the knife-thrower did for her, and she expected him to hate her and blame her for the loss of his leg. But she was surprised that when she saw him again he smiled and said, 'do you love me now?' And she replied…." He paused, for dramatic effect. "…maybe."

"How cold," I muttered. Inna sniffed, and pointedly looked away.

"From that point, their relationship bloomed. Inna opened her heart to the knife thrower, and he gladly appreciated it, having already guessed the beauty of it the moment he laid eyes on her. However, their happiness was short-lived. Inna's family had eventually located her, and they tried to convince her to come back. She refused again, and if it weren't for her brother's convincing, they would have taken her by force. Luckily, her brother saw how happy his sister was with her circus family and with her love, and so her family left her to live happily. However, her family finding her revealed her location to a rival," Alik said, his voice becoming more serious and his eyes becoming dark. "They planned to use Inna to get to the Giegue and so they attacked the circus, almost killing everyone. The knife-thrower fought with all his might, but could not save Inna. When the knife-thrower found his love, she was almost dead. He took her back to her family, begging them to save her. He later found out that to keep information about her family secure and safe, she damaged her own vocal cords, silencing herself forever. With their home and family they had grown close to for years massacred, Inna and the knife-thrower stayed with the Giegue. She convinced them that the knife-thrower was useful, and to prove himself, the knife-thrower trained his hardest to make himself valuable, learning all he could about weapons. Once he had proven himself to them, Inna's father gave the happy couple his blessing and Inna and the knife-thrower got married," he said turning to face Inna completely, holding her waist and looking up into her eyes, "and eventually they had two beautiful children, and they lived happily ever after. The end."

"That," I said, placing a hand over the chest, "was beautiful."

"It's my favorite," the twin to my left said, mirroring my movement.

"The best love story ever," the other sighed, putting a hand over their heart as well.

"We're lucky to have such a happy ending with the type of world we live in," Alik admitted, his eyes still on Inna. She nodded in agreement.

"I only hope I can have a happy ending like that," I wished, now in a romantic mood. The twins sighed in agreement, leaning their heads on my shoulders. "And a love like yours," I added, glancing back at Inna and Alik with a small smile.

"The symbol behind our ears," Alik explained, gently moving a bit of Inna's hair aside to see more of the tattoo, "was the symbol our circus used." Inna closed her eyes and kissed his forward, clearly remembering fond memories of their past. Unfortunately, Zhanna ruined the serene moment by ungracefully and loudly falling the floor.

"I see you've got your arms back," I mutter humorlessly, as the twins and I watched Zhanna unsuccessfully try to use her legs to stand, only to fail miserably.

"Just you three wait until I get my legs back," she growled. "Then you'll regret it."

"You know," I informed her, "right now, that's not a very convincing threat, seeing that you're on the floor, unable to get up." She glared at me coldly as the twins giggled behind me.

"Shut it, twig."

* * *

><p>"It's our turn to train you Cloud!" I turned my head weakly, watching as the twins ran into the playground, holding out their arms and running in circles around me. I groaned loudly, stretching my body out even more. I had barely finished Alik's training about an hour earlier, and Alik left me alone to rest and heal myself in peace. Today was blunt weapons and poles, and therefore a majority of my injuries were broken ribs and awful bruises, that although were severely less painful to heal than broken bones, they showed up slowly, giving myself more to heal as I noticed more bruises as the hour went by. There were also a few instances with internal bleeding that were incredibly painful to deal with.<p>

"Internal organs are the most painful to heal, just so you know," I informed the twins in a tired voice. They blinked, and ceased running around me, sharing a look. Then, they're faces brightened and they hit their palm with their fist. I could practically see the lightbulb go off in both of them.

"That makes sense!"

"Right, Shura! Since the organs aren't merely as exposed to as much damage."

"Then that means it would hurt more to heal them," the other finished.

"Your healing's so cool, Cloud!" one said, leaning over me. The other nodded happily, copying their twin's movement.

"Uh-huh!"

"I'm glad you to are excited about it," I said dryly. "Now, what's this about training?"

"Ah! We almost forgot!"

"We start training you today!"

"You guys are teaching me how to conceal my presence, right?" I established, already finding their chatter to be irritating. "So how exactly does that work?" I asked, slowly pushing myself up. They smiled, then plopped down on either side of me.

"Concealing your presence is all about hiding your intent," the left began, holding up a finger. "A person's intent controls what vibe they put off."

"That intent doesn't always have to be malicious either," the other explained. "For example, you're giving off an intent right now, just listening to us."

"People tend to pick up on these intents. It's sort of like a sixth sense. Even if they are not trained, an average person is able to do this. With training, a person can extend that range to sense their enemies."

"Some are even talented enough to pick out enemies from allies, and even track people with their intents, but that goes into some special talents, so we won't go into that," they explained, with a flick of their hand.

"The art of erasing your presence all depends on your ability to completely suppress your intents," the other said, bringing us back on topic. "Close your eyes, and try to pick up our intents." I did what I was told. I took a deep breath, and listened more than anything. My eyebrow furrowed, as I could only feel one other person in the room.

"I couldn't tell if you were there or not," I told the right twin.

"That's because I was suppressing my intent," they explained. "Sasha was not, which is why you were able to pick up on them."

"This is one of the most important skills an assassin has," the other added seriously. "If you can't hide your presence, then you're dead already."

"Nice to know. So, how are you going to beat this into me?" I asked, looking between them. "You can't seriously say that there's a nonviolent way you guys are going to teach me this," I pointed out, already knowing the family and their training tendencies all too well.

"Well, we could say that," the right twin admitted, looking across at their sibling, who smiled and completed the sentence.

"But then we would be lying."

* * *

><p>"So, basically," I summed their explanation up. "It's hide-and-go-seek?" They nodded enthusiastically.<p>

"That's what makes it fun!" one replied. My eyes wandered back to the chains looped and wrapped around both twins' waist, wondering what the use of them was. I decided to tread carefully, not knowing the twins' specialty. They had been careful to keep it under wraps, and I was receiving no help from their parents or cousin, who were standing nearby to watch the 'game'. I was glad, however, that they waited until nightfall to begin the actual training. That gave me more time to rest my sore muscles that were in fact, still, extremely sore.

"We'll give you ten minutes to find a hiding place," one twin explained happily. "But if we find you…" they trailed off, a dark, but still smiling expression on their face. "We will attack without mercy." I nodded, almost hesitantly. The other threw their hand up dramatically.

"Start!"

I wasted no time to run as far as I could, keeping a sharp mental clock. As soon as it was nine minutes, I hid myself on low ground, and focused on erasing my intent entirely. I was lucky that I've had Fon as a teacher, finding it relatively easy to clear my mind. Unfortunately, I was still easily found. I scowled, and pushed myself up from my hiding spot, dodging one of the twins that tried to land on me.

I was confused, suspicious even, as the twins chose a head-on confrontation. They were well aware I could best them in hand-to-hand. Like their mother, they were natural acrobats, and swiftly swung in and out between branches. Unfortunately, since there were two of them, I could only focus on the two of them, and could not investigate the metallic clanking sounds I had been hearing. I realized what it was, too late, as I remembered the chains. The twin in front of me suddenly jumped back, joining their sibling in the branch. I looked around, squinting in the dark, realizing that as the twins had been ducking in and out between the branches and trunks, they had been running the chains through them, making a cage-like structure around me. I narrowed my eyes, waiting for them to attack me again to better understand what they were up to. They smiled eerily at me, each holding the ends of the chains in one of their hands. They then clasped their empty hands together, a green light igniting their gloved hands.

The chains lit up around me and I let out a scream as my body was jarred by the electricity. Their smiles only grew wider as I fell to my knees

"Welcome to our Electric Cage, Cloud."

* * *

><p>"Of please, like their weak-ass flame could kill her." I scrunched my nose, waking up to Zhanna's ruff voice. "If she survived my flames, then the twins' flames would just be a little shock to her."<br>"Wait, she survived your flames?" Alik voice his concern. "You used your flames on her, and she survived?" I groaned loudly, finding my body even more sore than before (I didn't even think that was possible).

"Barely," I corrected Zhanna, causing the three occupants of the room to look at me. "I barely survived your flames." I looked up at them from where they had propped me up on the couch. Inna looked over at Zhanna, holding her PDA up.

"I defibrillated her," Zhanna answered her Aunt's typed question.

"And that worked?"

"Barely," I answered Alik before Zhanna could. "She almost killed me."

"But I didn't."

"How long ago was this?" Zhanna shrugged again.

"Not too long ago, right?" I shrugged, not knowing either. "She still has the injury on her torso."

"So, you're telling me," Alik began, turning towards me and raising an eyebrow, "that you came into this hellish training with an injury from the person who has one of the most violent flames in the family?" I nodded slowly, even finding that simple action to be painful. He whistled. "You _are _insane."

"I told you," Zhanna snubbed. I glared at her, but she didn't seem to notice, or she was just ignoring me.

"I mean, I was already surprised that you didn't take your weights off when we first sparred, and even now, you're still wearing them," he gestured at my wrists and ankles. "But this is a whole other level of insanity. Exactly how important is this training to you?"

"Extremely," I answered quietly. "It's extremely important to me. I have to get strong."

_'For your family?'_ Inna typed.

"Definitely not for myself," I said with a weak smile. "Like hell, I'd go through all this shit for myself," I scoffed, looking at the people I had come to known more than I would ever thought I would. "And with all this shit I'm going to go through, if this is going to be a normal day for me," I huffed, looking out the window at the mountainous landscape with a pout.

"This training better be worth it."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**God, I'm so happy Dayita's introduced now. She's such a fun character that I've been waiting forever to put in. I had decided a long time ago that Cloud was not going to just stick with a circle of friends that just consisted of canon characters. I've seen a lot of stories that have tried to force relationships and they just haven't worked (not really their fault; the personalities just didn't mix). God, the only thing Hibari and Zhanna can agree on is their hatred of Dayita. God, they're such battle freaks.**

**Cloud, baby, you're hurting yourself so much! I don't think I've ever said this here, so I'm going to say it now. The reason I named Cloud's first life Hannah is because I have a friend named Hannah that reminds me alarmingly a lot of Cloud. At first, when I first started this in my younger years (ew) it was basically a derpy little SI. But then, when I took a break and came back to it, I recognized that Cloud had a lot of potential as a character separate from myself. And from there on, her character just bloomed into her own person. Somewhere along the way, I made a connection between my Hannah and Cloud. Hannah is reckless for others, just as Cloud is (she's studying to be a doctor to help people too), and it always drives me and our other friends crazy. I just found that interesting. Hmph.**

**This family just put itself together on the page as I typed. Like, Inna and Alik's love story for example. I lvoe it when characters speak for themselves so easily. It makes it so much easier on me. I'll stop here for now, since school is starting again after so many snow days, but I'll try to update this weekend, since I don't have work. I keep thinking nothing is happening in these chapters, but it's really building up so much stuff. Hm. Oh well.**

**Review**** Response:**

**VanillaMilkshake18:** It's official! I have adopted you and you are now my child. Don't worry, I promise to take good care of you. Thanks for the review!

**XxSaphirezxxX:** Yeah, it's going to be bit confusing at first, and I apologize for that, and feel free to ask me any questions and I will try to answer them, but while not giving anything away. Spoiler, darling, spoilers! But, yeah, it's going to be skipping around timelines for a bit, because shit is going down. Thanks for the review, lovely! Procrastinating authors unite!

**bookimp:** (love the username!) Thanks for liking it, and thanks for reviewing! I'm glad that you find it interesting.

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** Oh my god, when I read this I could totally picture Zhanna turning to Gokudera and Yamamtot all like: "They kept the truth from you. How we really battle in the future is… through dance!" and then just totally busting out some mad moves. Ah, yes, And there's Cloud, noticing the important things: "Well I may have died, but at least I looked hot." Thanks for reviewing, and drawing buddies are forever.

**Allykrau:** God, that sounds like an awesome story. Thanks for the love and review!

**Uniquemangalover:** THANKS SO MUCH. THAT IS SUCH A LOVELY QUOTE. Warning, I'm adding it to my collection. THANKS FOR THE REVIEW AND FOR ANSWERING THE QUESTION.

**WinterStormArt:** (Nice username) Thanks for the review and the lovely quote! I'm adding it to my ever growing quote collection!

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** Lovely quote! Added it to my collection, in fact. Yeah, I have a problem with updating, so you have every right to complain. Especially, for being forced to wait as long as I made you guys wait. Whoops. And aw, you seem so adamant that she might not be dead or that there's something else going on with her death. That's adorable. Thanks for the review and for answering the question!

**PenguinOtaku:**

**(Chapter 12):** Thanks! Saw the opportunity for a One Piece reference and I took it with no regrets. In the end, Cloud's instinct to name the kid after a One Piece character was right, she just got the wrong name.

**(Chapter 25):** Psycho Pass is on my list to look into, and I have two friends obsessed with Attack on Titan and OHSHC as well. It might take me a while to get to Psycho Pass, though, since my list is so long…

**(Chapter 26):** I have a friend who went through a 'Dude' phase. He once said to a teacher, "Dude, chill" and she just kind of stared at him. I'm going through a 'fuck' phase right now.

**(Chapter 27):** I find that a lot of the characters that people like, have a quality that they strive for. Likewise, a lot of characters we naturally tend to hate, often have a quality that we see in ourselves that we hate. I got into a huge discussion about this with my creative writing teacher and English teacher about this with characters in The Great Gatsby. I just love discussing and analyzing characters.

**(Chapter 28):** Lion King will always make me tear up. Every fucking time.

**(Chapter 29):** Ah, I'm jealous! You guys have been all these cool places!

Thanks for all the reviews and answering the questions! You're simply too kind!

**outra: **

**(Chapter 11):** Thanks for the information! I'm also considering seriously getting a tattoo one day, but I want to give myself a few more years to think about it, to see if it really does stick with me for that long. Don't worry! You didn't come across as ranting or anything. I'm always happy to receive information from reviewers. Thanks for the love, review and enjoyment! I'm happy that you like it!

**RaNDoem:** Thanks! You know, that quote fits perfectly for what happened in the next chapter. If you were freaking out before, just wait for it. MUHUAHAHA! Ahem. Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Guest:**

**(Chapter 30):** Dude, I have a forty something paged documents filled with quotes too. Thanks god I am not the only quote hoarder. Lovely quotes! All my favorites are on my profile page, but the Welcome to Night Vale one I said is the most important to me. And great funny quotes! I tend to lead towards more emotional ones, so it's refreshing to see humorous ones. Thanks for answering the question and for reviewing!

**Question: What is your favorite nonanimatied/live-action movie?**

Okay, I have three, because I simply can't choose between them. Dead Poet's Society is one of the only movies that made me cry and is a great movie all around. The Princess Bride is iconic and classical, and I usually notice something new about it every time I watch it, making me love it even more. And finally, the only recently made favorite, Guardian's of the Galaxy is a perfect and completely kick-ass movie.

On that note, although not a favorite, I would like to bring attention to the new movie that just came out: Jupiter Ascending. Go see it. **Seriously.** It's one of the most cheesy, sci-fi trope filled, block buster, huge budget, explosion filled, worst movies ever made and _I loved every fucking minute of it_. It's the fantasy every tween-early teen girl had, and it's gorgeous. Plus, there's about a full fifteen minuets of space werewolf Channing Tatum without a shirt on for no reason what so ever. So, yeah, good movie. Give your money to it instead of Fifty Shades.

**AS ALWAYS THANKS FOR ALL THE LOVELY FAVORITES, FOLLOWS AND REVIEW! I TRULY APPRECIATE YOU ALL!**

**-Klu**


	32. The Danger of Expectations

Chapter 32: The Danger of Expectations

As always, lovely readers, I don't own KHR.

* * *

><p><strong> "Not all questions are answered, commander, but fortunately some answers are questioned."<strong>

**-Terry Pratchett (Felicity Beedle; Snuff)**

* * *

><p>"Done? What do you mean done?" I panted, looking down at Alik as I released his now-broken arm.<p>

"I mean," he said, not even phased by the injury as I shoved myself away from him so he could push himself up. "That we've covered all the major categories. I told you we were about done a few days ago," he reminded me as he reached for his fallen weapon, letting his useless arm hang limp from his side.

"Well, yeah, I remember that," I admitted, sitting on the ground, my breathing a bit heavy. "I just didn't expect-"

"I told you, expectations-"

"-are dangerous," I finished for him, laughing lightly, and holding my side. I frowned when I looked down to see blood seeping through my shirt. "You always said that," I complained, beginning to heal the gash on my side. He shrugged, walking over to the wall of weapons to put his fans back onto the wall.

"It's good advice," he said. Then he glanced back over at me, noticing I was done healing my side. I met his gaze, then my eyes lingered to his broken arm. I smiled apologetically. "Don't even start," he warned me with a stern gaze, and yet, even then I could see the amusement in his eyes. "This is training; it's totally fine that you injure us during it, especially since you can heal us later."

"But I always feel guilty," I sighed, eventually pushing myself up and walking over to put my fans up as well. "Especially when I hurt the twins."

"Cloud, they've electrocuted you on numerous occasions."

"Yeah, but they're still just kids," I argued weakly. He sighed in disbelief as we made our way out of the playground and into the living room area.

"You're really are too soft," he noted, patting me on the shoulder. "Which is why it's good that you learned to hold that side of you back in a fight so quickly."

"It's not really holding it back, as much as it is building it up so I can unleash it later," I admitted, still looking at his arm with a guilty expression. He laughed in response. Inna looked up from her book as we entered and greeted us with a soft smile. As soon as Alik took his place beside his wife, I motioned for him to give me his arm. He complied and I made quick work of healing it.

"This pain tolerance thing really does come in handy," Alik admitted once I was done, inspecting his arm and moving it around. "Still hurts like hell, but more bearable than the first time."

"I'm still impressed you only frown in response," I said. "I swear this family is on a whole other level."

"We're tough!"

"Tough as nails!" I didn't even flinch as the twin's leaned over the couch on both sides of me, looking at me with wide smiles. I nodded as a greeting and they frowned in response.

"No fair!"

"You don't get scared anymore!"

"If I'm not mistaken, Cloud hasn't been scared by you for a while now," Alik hummed, leaning his head on Inna's shoulder.

"Sorry, but I've gotten used to you two popping up, especially after your training," I informed them. They huffed, annoyed that I was no longer amusing to them.

"It's no more fun now that you've passed," the right twin whined.

"No fun as all," the other concluded.

"Passed?" I parroted.

"They haven't told you yet?" Zhanna asked as she entered, fresh from her daily workout with a towel around her shoulders. I looked at the happy couple beside me with a raised eyebrow. Inna looked at Alik pointedly.

"I told her she was done with mine," he excused himself. Inna's expression remained unamused. She sighed, and typed into her PDA.

_'You've completed our training. All of it.' _

"Congrats, brat!" I winced as Zhanna roughly clapped a hand on my shoulder.

"Still sore," I reminded her. "Still really, really sore."

"Naturally," Alik stated. "Which is why we'll give you a few days to rest." I immediately perked up at this news.

"_Wǒ cào_, I _am_ done," breathed out, knowing that they would never give me a break during the training (and knowing that it would have been stupid to even consider asking).

"We can still refine your skills a bit," Alik continued, wearing his usual amused expression, "but we've beaten into you all we can teach you."

_'You've improved a lot,'_ Inna typed. _'Be proud.'_

"As much as you've had to heal yourself, you've better fucking improved on your flame control," Zhanna inputted, jumping over the back of the couch to sit next to me.

"She definitely improved concealing her presence!" A twin enthusiastically informed us, hugging my neck.

"Definitely!" the other sang, flinging arms around my neck as well. I sighed, and allowed my body to slacken, too familiar with their behavior.

"I'm just glad we don't have to get paralyzed anymore," Alik complained, lightly. "I hated being shot by her."

"Same," Zhanna agreed, frowning slightly. She perked up, a thought entering her head. "But, hey, you've got some cool scars from training, I bet." She roughly punched me in the shoulders, causing the twins to release me and lean back. I sighed, slightly rubbing the abused spot.

"We'll see when my wounds fully heal."

"You're not going to heal them now?" I shook my head.

"No way," I leaned back, tired and sore, yet extremely relieved to be done with the intense training the family had pushed me through. "I'm taking full advantage of you guys letting me rest." I allowed a smile, almost proud that I had endured this for my family and friends, and was able to get through this hellish training in a little less than a month thanks to them.

"I'm happy," I admitted, letting myself feel completely tired and worn out for the first time in what seemed like forever. I thought of my progress and my family, and how I truly felt strong enough to at least try to protect them now. I thought about my break in this arc, and how because of that break I can spend time refining my skills to become stronger for them, at a less breakneck pace. I smiled and let out a relieved laugh.

"I'm really happy."

* * *

><p>"I visited the Varia as a messenger of the tenth in regards to a certain condition. In the middle of that, the Vongola hunt started," a grown-up Ryohei explained, once Chrome was situated and the young girls that had arrived form the past had left the room. "Some source told the Varia about you guys who came from ten years ago, and I heard about it over there, too."<p>

"Dayita and Zhanna briefly mentioned a source telling them about this information as well," Kusakabe mentioned. "It's very likely that it's the same source." Ryohei nodded in agreement, then continued.

"Only surviving members of Vongola and its affiliates know about it, so I'm not surprised those two knew. Though, there are many that don't believe it."

"Affiliate family…" Tsuna said thoughtfully, then perked up. "You mean Dino's Chiavarone Family too?!"

"Yup," the sun guardian answered. "They're alive too."

"Thank goodness!" Tsuna breathed out with a wide smile, as if those mere words comforted him completely. "So that mean's Dino and Cloud are okay?" Ryohei's expression fell. Bianchi frowned and looked away, and Kusakabe fist barely clenched.

"Chiavarone Cloud is dead," the former-prefect explained, having investigated this incident too many times, and knowing it all too well. "She died during a negotiation with Byakuran himself."

"N-no way…." Tsuna muttered his face blank, the smile form before completely nonexistent.

"Cloud…" Yamamoto paled, not once having considered this. Her dying was never something he considered. Gokudera blinked, slowly taking in this information, and not yet processing his words. Then, all at once, it seemed to hit him. He clenched his fists and glared at Kusakabe angrily.

"Who the fuck did it?" He growled, seething. "Who the fuck killed her, huh?!"

"It seemed as if she killed herself," he replied blankly, without emotion, having already dealt with more than one angry person who received the same news. It was sad to say that he almost knew how to handle giving the news of her death. Kusakabe didn't like to think of that as a talent.

"We think that she had a piece of information that Byakuran wanted," Bianchi said gently, knowing the boys were still shocked. "And that she did what she had to do to keep that from him. She helped so much during the Vongola hunt," she reminisced, a ghost of a smile on her face. "She was tactful. It was like she was one step ahead. She was the reason the Geigue is still helping us, even with the tremendous losses they have suffered. She pulled many connections she made over the years and helped everyone she could. She even saved your father, Yamamoto," Bianchi informed him kindly. He barely looked up, a soft look in his eyes.

"Is Dino okay?" The occupants of the room looked over at Tsuna. He repeated his question, in a firmer tone. "Is Dino okay?"

"He's…" Kusakabe struggled for the words. "doing the best he can. It's difficult for him, though."

"First losing his love, then his sister," Bianchi muttered sadly. Ryohei frowned and barely shuffled his feet, the aura of the room becoming almost suffocating for him.

"Cloud's death won't be in vain," the sun guardian declared sharply, almost startling them, "along with the other losses we've suffered. The family brains plotted a large-scale operation," he explained, drawing them back on subject. "The order for us, the Tenth's family, is to raid Millefiore's Japanese branch in five days."

* * *

><p>I hummed a familiar tune happily as I made my way back to my room at a leisurely pace.<p>

"I love my life," I almost sang I was swung myself into the room and plopped down on the bed. My body protested, naturally, but I welcomed the soreness gladly, now knowing that I wouldn't have to suppress it during training, and knowing that the pain only meant I was stronger now. "I wonder if they'll even recognize me," I almost giggled, thinking of surprising Bel and Squalo with my newly acquired handle on weapons. "I might even be able to get Dino's whip from him…." I trailed off, frowning as I thought back to the most recent conversation with my brother. I sighed and closed my eyes, putting it past me. "It was worth it, Dino," I quietly whispered, clenching my fist. "You'll see."

My eyes snapped over to the bedside table, when I noticed my phone lighting up and buzzing. I sighed and rolled over, reached for my phone and flipping it open, raising it above my face to look at it. I frowned as my eyes scanned over the kanji.

"I need you to come to Namimori," I read out loud quietly, my eyebrows burrowed, "It's an emergency….?" I flipped over and my fingers flew over the keys, quickly texting a question back. I looked away, tapping my finger impatiently, now worried. I scanned through my mind of who this could be. I had Yamamoto, Gokudera and Tsuna's number saved in my phone, as well as Haru and Kyoko's, so they were out of the question. There was also the fact that they should be in the future now, being helped by my older self. The question was, who was in Namimori that would ask me for help? How did they know how to contact me? My attention snapped back to my phone as the person replied, almost too quickly. My frown deepened as I read.

_'This is Hibari Kyoya. It's an emergency, come quickly.'_

* * *

><p>Hibari Kyoya was angry. Of course, that could very well be an understatement. His second in command was very much aware of this information, and his second in command was also very much aware that he needed to stay as far away from his president as possible until this passed. Or, at least until his president found missing cellphone. Yes, Kusakabe was a smart man, and yet he was still trailing behind Hibari as the leader tore through the town, beating nearly every thug that dared to even look at him strangely. Kusakabe could try to convince himself that he was simply looking out for his boss, to make sure he didn't go too far. That would be a lie, of course, since Kusakabe was very aware of the fact that he had no ability whatsoever to stop Hibari (there were perhaps only two people who he could think of, that could achieve such a feat). Although he would never admit it openly, Kusakabe was simply curious about who had the guts (or rather, who was stupid enough) to steal Hibari Kyoya's cellphone. Certainly, no one with intelligence, Kusakabe assured himself. He sighed and backed away slightly, as Hibari continued to beat yet another hoodlum senseless. What would prompt someone to take the prefect's phone, he did not know. Kusakabe certainly couldn't think of a reason they would need to steal it.<p>

Growing bored and reminding himself he still had work to do, Kusakabe turned to return to Nami Middle with a sigh, only to run straight into a small figure as he rounded the corner. He looked down blankly, at the meek looking red-haired boy that stared up at him fearfully. The boy quickly stepped back, giving the older boy more than enough space and clutched the duffel bag in his arms tightly.

"I wouldn't go that way," Kusakabe advised the glasses-wearing boy, seeing no threat in him and feeling rather generous at the moment, after seeing his boss beat numerous other weaklings already. "There's a guy up ahead that's looking for every possible fight," Kusakabe said, and walked past the boy muttering. "I still can't believe someone took his phone…"

Irie Shoichi slumped against the wall with his shoulder, still clutching the duffel bag tightly.

"He's going to kill me…" he muttered pathetically, shaking and close to tears. "Hibari Kyoya's going to kill me if he finds out I have it…" His eyes darted to the bag, and he didn't even dare to open it, already too familiar with its contents. "But I had to! I didn't have a choice!" he muttered miserable. "This was the only way to get her here! I followed the note's instructions!" The ten-year bazooka weighed heavily in the duffel bag, serving as a grim reminder of his duty. Irie Shoichi's knees buckled, his stomach churning as he pathetically fell to his knees.

"This was the only way to get Chiavarone Cloud here!"

* * *

><p>"In my opinion, I think it was Rokudo Mukuro who brought the news about Chrome to the Varia," Kusakabe suggested as the two men sat in a room of Hibari's side of the base.<p>

"Of course," Hibari muttered quietly, closing his eyes. "The illusionists are up to something."

"You think they're working together?" Kusakabe questioned, a bit surprised. "I thought they hated each other."

"They do," Hibari stated with an almost amused smirk. "That's the only thing she's good for, anyways, beside her connections," he admitted callously. "It's an amusing thought, isn't it?"

"What so important that they are putting aside their hatred to work together for?" the man asked his boss. Hibari's cold gaze snapped to meet Kusakabe's eyes.

"Not what," the cloud guardian corrected coldly, "but who?"

* * *

><p>"I told you, Zhanna," I repeated. "I'm just really worried."<p>

_"Why the fuck are you worried about that bastard?"_ she gruffly responded on the other end of the phone. _"The brat can take care of himself. Besides, it's weird that he even contacted you in the first place. Doesn't fit him."_

"That's I why I came here," I explained. "It's weird; he would never ask for help unless it's really important."

_"Why the fuck does he even have your number anyway?"_ Zhanna brought up as I walked the streets of Namimori, making my way to Nami Middle at a fast pace.

"Dino," I answered with a sigh. "I have no doubt about it," I said, easily imaging Dino bugging Hibari about staying in touch in case he ever needs us. I doubt my brother knew that he would need us so soon, though.

_"God, you're family's too nice,"_ Zhanna complained. _"Whatever. Just get your ass back as soon as you're done. If you need to heal something, don't overdo it,"_ she warned me with a stern tone. _"You better be fucking resting. Take advantage of this time. You've earned."_

"Relax, Zhanna," I assured her, letting out a light chuckled. "You and I both know that I've improved on my flame control. With the training and the new gloves that are way better that the prototypes, I'm positive we won't have something like that happen again."

_"With your track record_?" She scoffed. _"I doubt it, little horse."_ I huffed as she simply hung up, then shrugged, placing my phone back into my pocket.

"Ah, well," I muttered, not at all surprised by her behavior. I frowned, my eyebrows knitting together as I thought about the valid points she had brought up, and the valid points I had been mulling over throughout the entire hastily put together trip back to Japan. Kyoya would never ask for help; I was well aware of this. Being well aware of this, the messages he sent me made me even more worried. I just really hope that this had nothing to do with the future arc. My goal was to stay out of it as much as possible, but Zhanna was spot on about my tract record. I sighed and began jogging, worrying myself even more. I haven't even contacted Mukuro and told him the good news that I was done with the majority of training. It was when I was trying to distract myself, thinking of visiting Chrome after I got this problem sorted out that I met Kyoya, literally stalking the streets of Namimori.

"He's pissed," I whispered quietly, immediately picking up on his mood. I paled, thinking it was because I didn't come in time. He stopped in his tracks the moment he saw me, and raised an eyebrow. I approached him almost cautiously.

"Kumo," he greeted. He took in the visible bandages on my neck and cheek. "You're injured?"

"Training with Zhanna," I answered, then regretted mentioning the assassin, as his eyes nearly lit up with fury. "But she's not here," I assured him, wondering if that was the right thing to say. "Anyway, what did you need me for? You said it was an emergency…..?" I trailed off, only getting a blank look from him.

"I didn't need you," he stated, clearly offended I would even consider the notion. It was my turn to raise an eyebrow.

"You texted me, right?" His expression remained blank. I pulled out my phone to show him the message myself. "That is your number, isn't it?" I asked again, a cold feeling in the pit of my stomach growing as the situation become more and more unclear.

"Someone stole my cellphone," he informed me, his eyes narrowed. My body tensed, the situation screaming trap. Hearing a strange noise behind me, I immediately moved, stepping front of Kyoya, putting one arm in front of him, and the other reaching to retrieve my gun from my hip. I was expecting a fight; I was prepared for a battle. I was not prepared to be engulfed by pink smoke. Confusion hit me first, then reality slowly sunk in.

I had been hit by the ten-year-bazooka.

* * *

><p>"You still can't get in touch with Byakuran-san?"<p>

"Yes," the Cervello answered by Irie's side as they swept down the hallways of the base. "He seems to not be answering our attempts to communicate with him."

"Not answering?" Irie repeated, almost in disbelief. "Why is he not answering?"

"The last message we received was something about him meeting up with an 'old friend'," the other woman reported. "He has asked not to be disturbed."

"Meeting with friends at a time like this…" Irie muttered, concealing his actual concern not knowing what Byakuran was doing. "Why is that guy like that…" he shook his head, dismissing the feeling. "Relay orders for a round-the-clock-surveillance on Glo. I'm going to take a short break." Irie sighed and entered the room, the two woman right behind him.

Something gave him a bad feeling about this. He could only hope this 'friend' Bykauran was meeting wasn't too troublesome.

* * *

><p>I steadied my breathing and closed my eyes, coming alarmingly close to having a panic attack. Although, closing my eyes didn't make much of a difference anyway, since there was nothing but blackness in front of me in the first place. I opened my eyes to darkness, and the first thing I felt was coldness. The only thing I knew for sure that I was in the future, but even that fact was slowing withering away as time passed and I began growing colder and more confused, even if I noticed the temperature around me slightly rising and no longer emitting cold.<p>

My logic had not gotten me far. I had yet to find a reason why I would be sent to the future. If I was to be used for motivation, they wouldn't have sent me this late. I would have been sent along with the others, near the beginning of the arc. I didn't have a Vongola ring, and I had nothing to offer in the ultimate endgame. It would be useless to send me here, and my future self would be much more helpful in the helping my family from my timeline. Thinking of my future-self brought me to the valid point where I once again questioned my location. I assumed it wasn't a coffin, since coffins are not cold, mechanical, and they don't make a beeping sound that monitor my heart beat. There was also the flow of oxygen, which seemed to come out of two vents on opposite sides of the rectangle I was in. So, unless this was some weird futuristic coffin, I assumed I wasn't dead. Well, I hope I wasn't dead. I really, really hope I wasn't dead.

My attempts to meditate brought me nowhere. It was like I was too freaked out to enter my mind, so I couldn't talk to Hannah. There was also the fact that I couldn't feel Mukuro, let alone contact him. It was strange; I had never noticed the imprint his presence left on my mind, until it was completely gone. It was as if something was missing in my mind. I missed him, although I would never admit that to the illusionist. But, it sure would be reassuring to have that presence with me at the moment.

I stiffened, hearing noise outside of my containment for the first time since I had arrived. Taking a deep breath as I heard strange beeping noises, as if someone where entering a combination, I braced myself and moved in a position where I could easily leap out. With the sound of releasing air, the top slid off the rectangle I had been trapped in, and I barely gave myself time to adjust to the light, going after the first shape I saw. Pushing myself up, I brought my leg to meet to man's chest, forcing him down and grabbing his arm, while my other arm held one of my guns up. I easily put the man in a lock, and looked over at the other person who I had pointed my gun at. I managed to keep my face from falling into a hopeless expression as I slowly lowered my gun and released the man, backing off and standing up. I dropped my weapon, and glared at the people around me, pointing weapons of their own at me. I was completely surrounded.

As soon as my gun hit the floor, my arms were pulled together from behind me. With nothing but a few nods, the group ushered my out of the room, their weapons aimed at me the whole time. I drank in my surroundings, noticing the emptied hallways, and their white uniforms. My eyes narrowed, watching as the leader of the group would always check around the corner before motioning for the rest to go. I was almost startled as I was pulled into an empty room, only three others entering with me.

"Make it quick," one of my guards popped his head into the room, "Byakuran-sama's getting impatient enough as it is with the set-backs we've had. We don't want him to get angry." I paled, and my knees threatened to buckle at the mention of the name. I managed to stay quiet, although I was internally breaking down. The three woman in the room with me nodded in understanding, and quickly closed the door; two standing in front of it, turning their weapons on me again. The remaining woman who was holding my arms backs moved her arms to my shirt and tugged at it. I jerked away, and the guards tensed, raising their weapons.

"I can undress myself," I muttered, calming myself down. This situation was stressful enough with me not knowing anything. My captors being this extensive and articulate about searching me wasn't helping. The woman narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but then seemed to take the slightest bit of pity on me.

"Don't try anything," she warned, taking a few steps back, giving me space. I turned around, and then began removing my clothes, my back turned. I immediately began analyzing the situation once more, as I handed each article of clothing to the woman, who thoroughly searched them.

Byakuran was waiting for me, I repeated in my head. Byakuran, of all people was waiting for me. But why, why? I repeated the question over and over, as I crossed my arms over my bare chest, turning to look away from the woman again as I patiently waited for her to finish searching my clothes. Why would he want to talk to me? Is this why I was sent to the future? Why would he need to talk to me? I let out a shaky breath, noticing that she simply patted down my boots and looked inside them. I held back another relieved sigh as she handed me all my clothes back, naturally deprived of the weapons I had hidden in them. They had confiscated my two guns and four knives I had hidden on my body, I mentally counted in my head. However, I held back the smallest trace of smile, holding desperately onto the only good thing to come out this situation; she failed to find one of Bel's knife hidden under the fold of my left boot. I reminded myself to kiss Bel next time I saw him, extremely glad for his insistence that I always carry around at least one of his knives ("For your safety, princess").

I turned to face the women once I was fully dressed, but was unpleasantly surprised to see one holding out a straitjacket. I sighed sadly, and at the prompting of the weapons being aimed at me, I held out my arms and watched sourly as they fit the jacket securely around me, rendering my arms useless. One of my guards knocked on the door before it was opened, and we were once again ushered into the hallway. I found it strange that the same scouting method was used, where one of the guards would look ahead and around corners ahead of us. It seemed like they didn't want others to know I was here.

A lump formed in my throat and my stomach dropped as we stopped in front of the door. I looked pointedly away, desperately looking for anything in my surroundings that could help me as the person addressed the man I knew was waiting for me inside. I didn't move as they motioned for me to enter, and then I was roughly pushed inside, the door shutting and undoubtedly locking behind me. Taking another shaky breath, I reminded myself that Bel's knife was in my boot, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that I couldn't easily get to it, thanks to my restraints. I hesitantly looked up only to meet dangerously coy purple eyes. The white-haired man smiled, the tattoo under his eye crinkling. He pushed himself up from his earlier position, lazily lounging one of the futons in the spacious room and walked towards me.

"I'm so glad you're finally here, Cloud-chan!" He greeted me, smiling widely and putting his hands on my shoulders. I stiffened at the contact, still extremely uncomfortable and unsure of the situation. He either didn't notice my discomfort, or chose to ignore it as he slipped his arm around my shoulder and led me to the couch, sitting me down, and taking his place next to me. "You don't know how long I've been waiting, Cloud-chan!" He said, leaning back and casually putting one of his legs on the coffee table in front of us. I glanced out the window, taking in the view, trying to distract myself in anyway. However, before I could fully turned my head, he grabbed my chin, and forced me to look at him. His eyes narrowed and his thumb traced lightly over the bandage on my cheek.

"You're hurt," he stated without emotion. "They didn't do that, did they?" His tone was dark and his expression dangerous. I opened my mouth to answer, but didn't manage a full one out.

"Can you not?" I asked instead, not enjoying how tight his grip on my chin was. He blinked then a smile slipped onto his face. He released my chin, laughing.

"I like this Cloud-chan a lot more than the other one," He admitted. "You're a lot more fun. Of course, bringing you to the future was a risky move," he admitted, leaning to grab the bag of marshmallows sitting on the coffee table, "since there was no way to know for certain if you have the same information as your future self." He continued, looking off thoughtfully, but I could still tell he was gauging my reaction with every word he said.

"What happened to my future self?" I asked, deciding there was no point holding my questions back, since he seemed eager to talk.

"Oh? She died," he said simply, shrugging. "Shot herself in the head!" He explained, making a gun with his hand and completing the sentence with the sickening motion. I blinked, not fully processing the information.

"I-I killed myself?" I repeated numbly.

"It was quite irritating, actually," Byakuran moved on quickly, a glint in his eye. "It was a smart move. Noble, even," he allowed. "Valiantly taking her own life to keep the information she held away from me forever… or, at least, that's what she died thinking." He eyes lingered over to me, and I felt like I wanted to throw up. I killed myself. I killed myself. I was dead. What about Dino? What about her Dino, and her Bel, and Squalo and Tsuna… did she even think about them? Did she even think about how this would affect her family?

"It's almost sad that her death was in vain," Byakuran muttered, pulling me back into reality. "But it's okay! Because now we have you Cloud-chan, and I knew from the moment you came in that you knew you weren't supposed to be in this world!" I gave him a confused expression and he chuckled.

"Past or present, future or not, you, Cloud Chiavarone, were never meant to be in this world," he elaborated. "That's what makes you special. You only exist in one physical universe, and that's this one. So technically, especially now, since your future self is dead, there is only one Cloud Chiavarone in existence, throughout all the universes. You're lucky, Cloud-chan! You're unique," he concluded. I blinked, slowly, barely, taking in his words.

"You've got to be kidding…" I muttered quietly. I truly didn't know the extent of what I did when I pressed that button in my last lifetime.

"The fact that you're taking this so calmly just proves it," Byakuran pointed out, still smiling widely. "You know you're not supposed to be here, that's special enough. But you just have to go and be even more impressive, don't you? Not only are you truly one of the most unique beings in the universe, but it seems as if you have knowledge that I don't possess," he cooed smoothly. "Information that the older you took her own life to keep from me. Now, I'm wondering if her younger self has that information yet." I connected the pieces too quickly, not finding it hard to know what information he was talking about.

"Bingo!" He chirped, noticing, watching for the change in my eyes. "I love this Cloud-chan so much more than the old one," he stated again. "You're so much easier to read, after all. If you have that knowledge, then I assume you know what's going to happen next, right?"

"You're going to drug me," I said quietly, a dooming sense of desperation washing over me, looking for every opportunity to escape, but seeing none whatsoever, "and then use me to get what you want."

"So smart, Cloud-chan!" He congratulated, but I barely acknowledged it as my instinct went into overdrive. "And this time I took every precaution to make sure we wouldn't have a repeat of last time."

"Where I killed myself," I repeated numbly. "There are more ways to kill myself than with a gun, you know." His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Ah, but you're not like the other Cloud," he stated, almost daring, leaning close to me. I resisted the urge to lean away. "You still have a reason to live." His head snapped towards the door opening as I was registering his cold words. I took in his deadly facial expression, as our meeting was interrupted by a man walking in.

"I told you that no one is allowed t-" He stopped short, obviously recognizing the man, who stopped and was staring at Byakuran with a terrified expression.

"I'm sorry, Byakuran-sama, but I ne-"

"I should have expected that you would find a way to interrupt us," Byakuran sneered, a cold, chilling smile on his face. "I thought I had orders to keep you busy?" I narrowed my eyes, taking in the man's heterochromatic colored eyes, hope surging through me. His nervous expression dropped, and his act was completely abandoned.

"That might have worked if they presented a challenge for me," the man chuckled, red flashing in one of his eyes.

"What a shame. I was hoping to get rid of you before Cloud-chan dropped by," Byakuran commented as he rose, moving to step in between the man and me. "I didn't expect you to give yourself away so soon, Mukuro Rokudo." I breathed out, letting a relieved, shaky smile onto my face.

"Kufufufu, desperate times call for desperate measures," Mukuro Rokudo said, the voice coming out the man almost too familiar, but I was all too happy to hear it. His eyes flickered over to me, and he smiled, but there was almost a sympathetic look behind his eyes. "And these are, indeed, desperate times. Wouldn't you agree, little Chiavarone?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

_Holy shit, Alik and Inna are so cute, they just write the little couple things they do themselves and I love it. And the sass level of Mukuro and Byakuran is insane. That's going to be fun to mess with later when, you know, they're not literally trying to kill each other. Okay, note: right when I started writing the scene where present-Cloud first meets Byakuran, the song "Jerk of the Week" starts playing form my play list. Talk about fitting._

_Okay, short chapter, but I wanted to get this out, because, really, it's a perfect place to stop, because if I went on, there wouldn't be a good place to stop for a while. Next chapter will be a long one, promise. Like, hella long. Now that Cloud is actually in the future, things are going to start rolling. Well, rolling more than they were._

**Review Response:**

**DreamsRMyLife: **Aw, thanks for the love, and I'm glad you like it so much! Cloud doesn't have time for too much angst, she had to save her own ass. And I'm glad you like the others too! Thanks for the love and review!

**GlassedGamer: **Dude, I listened to it, and I loved it. Very inspirational. Thanks for the review!

**Raven-V-Blackshade: **I should look into that movie, it sounds awesome. And yes, you should be frightened. I probably say that too much, actually. I also have somewhat two personalities, but mine are more like filters. Like, at school and in more public places, I have a strong filter, and the more I hang around a person, that filter wears down, and I start cussing like a fucking sailor. It scares people all the fucking time, and when I'm tired it's especially bad. It's hilarious though.

And feel free to bounce as many ideas off me as you want! I don't mind at all, and love talking to my readers and helping peeps out. Feel free to message me too, if you want, so you don't have to wait for a random, unperiodical update. Thanks for the review!

**XxSaphirexX: **Ah, I love the smell of tortured readers in the wee hours of the morning. All your questions will be answered in time. Probably. Maybe. Eventually. Perhaps not, but isn't it a lovely thought to think that they will be? Thanks for the review!

**Allykrau: **Fanservice is always a valid reason. Dude, I'm about dead right now. Pretty sure I'm high from paint fumes form working on prom all day and we're losing an hour tonight because of fucking day light savings, and it's just impressive that I'm still functioning…. Like, barely functioning. Eh. Thanks for the review!

**L-ceil: **Yeah, it's a little confusing at first because of having to switch around timelines, but now that Cloud's officially in the future, it should go along much smoother now. Sorry about the confusion! Thanks for the review!

**Uniquemangalover: **THANKS SO MUCH. I WANT TO SEE THAT MOVIE BUT HAVEN'T GOTTEN THE CHANCE TO YET. THANKS FOR ALWAYS REVIEWING AND BEING WONDERFUL!

**VanillaMilkshake18: **Agreed, Cloud is a stupid little shit. Cloud's character has actually surprised me with her growth and I'm proud of her in many ways. She's still an idiot though. Thanks for the review!

**Guest:**

**(Chapter 8) Angel: **Yeah, I've heard they hurt (you know, depending on where you get them), but I'm seriously considering getting one if this one thing is still important to me after a few years.

**Question:**

**Favorite Song:**

Okay, I have too many favorites that fall into too many categories, so like I'm doing, you can just pick your most recent favorite or a song you've recently gotten obsessed with.

My song Is The Last Goodbye, by Billy Boyd. I actually heard it first form watching a Korra AMV (or whatever that acronym is) and the video made me cry, so I watched it 50 times, and it still made me cry, so naturally, I had to buy the song on itunes. That song just makes me so emotional, and since Korra is so important to me, that song has become so important to me.

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR THE LOVELY FAVORITES, FOLLOWS AND REVEIWS!**

-Klu


	33. A Warm Welcome

Chapter 33: A Warm Welcome

I don't own KHR, blah, ba-blah, blah, blah

* * *

><p><strong>"Life had acquired the texture of fiction by a bad writer who cannot impose order and logic on his characters as they run amok."<strong>

**-Charles Matthews**

* * *

><p>"Cloud-chan has slipped from my grasp once before," Byakuran said coldly, the smile still plastered onto his face. "What makes you think I'll let you take her away from me?" I shifted awkwardly, the air in the room tense. He was talking about me like I wasn't in the room, and as if he regarded me as nothing more than object for him to use.<p>

"Kufufu, what makes you think that you'll be able to stop me," the man sneered, Mukuro's eyes narrowing.

"You seem really motivated, Mukuro-kun. You even have a hell ring; that's very rare," Byakuran commented in a light voice, but I could tell he was still alert, watching both me and his opponent carefully. "It would be a good exercise to fight you," he admitted to the possessed man, "but you just so happen to have the worst timing."

"I've been waiting for this moment to possess you," the illusionist stated, "and this just happened to align with this mission."

"Mission?" Byakuran repeated. "To save Cloud-chan, I presume?" He laughed. "I hardly think you'd be able to do that alone." I blinked, watching as a small snake slithered out of the possessed man's sleeve, and then make its way across the room. I tried not to stare at it, seeing that Byakuran didn't seem to notice it.

"It would be foolish for you to assume I'm working alone," 'Mukuro' stated, bringing out a box weapon. Byakuran casually shifted in a fighting stance, still adamantly standing between us, lifting his hand to show off his mare ring. Mukuro's eyes flickered over to me once more as I tried to keep still as the snake wrapped itself around my neck daintily. I resisted the instinct to squirm, uncomfortable with the animal resting on a vulnerable spot. "I did say these were desperate times, after all." He opened the box in a blur, and looked over at me.

"Go for the door now! Run!" Not wasting time, and willing to follow every order, I stumbled off the couch and dove for the door. Using the small opening Mukuro must have left when he came in, I pushed it all the way open with my shoulder, not looking back at the loud noises and yells behind me, but vaguely feeling the weight of the snake around my neck whither away. I fell into the hallway, and landed on my knees. Not looking back, not daring to waste anytime escaping, not daring to misuse Mukuro's sacrifice, I pushed myself up to my feet and began running. I scowled as I ran around the corner, only to run into a group of Millefiore.

Before they could barely raise their weapon, I kicked the first's gun downward, then put all my might in kneeing him under the jaw. I then took the next down with another kick, then dropped down to dodge a punch coming at me. Using my core, I twisted myself where I could grab one's arm with my legs, forcefully throwing him into another. I pushed myself up, my muscles burning (my abs especially, dammit. I was still sore from training, and not being able to use my arms put all the strain on my core).

Kicking one of my fallen opponents in the head to make sure he was out, I began moving on once again, not stopping despite knowing very well that I had no idea where to go or what to do. All I knew is that if I didn't use Mukuro's fight to escape now, there would be no chance later. I bit my bottom lip, thinking about the illusionist. Byakuran wouldn't be playing around, like in the original fight. I wouldn't have as much time, and I sincerely hoped that Mukuro wouldn't actually die because of me. I sighed and shook my head. I had faith in Mukuro, and I just hope that faith would hold out, for his sake.

I growled as I rounded the corner only to see more opponents. My sudden appearance startled them, giving me the advantage to take the first three down with well establish, crippling kicks. I put my worries in the back of my mind while fighting, leaving no room for mercy. Just as Alik taught me, I though grimly. Compare to my trainers, these guys were nothing. I stood looking down at my fallen opponents. I didn't allow myself to grimace at the angle one's leg made, but resolved to move on again, wondering if this is what it was going to be like until the sad moment when Byakuran caught me himself, or I simply ran out of stamina. Hearing more footsteps coming toward me, I groaned. That groan turned into a small gasp, as I was suddenly pulled into a previously shut door. I was pulled into a solid chest, the door shutting quietly behind me, giving the small closet dim lighting.

I immediately stomped the figure's foot, and as soon as he was bent, I kneed him harshly in the face. I backed up against the door, and was ready to knock him out, but his words stopped me.

"Ow, Nee-san," an extremely blank voice drawled, throwing me off completely. "I think you broke my nose." He looked at me with placid green eyes, despite obviously being in pain and holding his nose tenderly. As my eyes began adjusting to the dim lighting, I took in his features, somewhat recognizing the large, black frog hat he wore on his head and the bored face with small triangles under his eyes.

"You're…" I muttered, adrenaline still rushing through me and having trouble placing a name with his face.

"I'm hurt, nee-san," the Varia's new illusionist complained. "It's me, you're favorite person. Fran."

"Fran?" I repeated numbly. He nodded, giving me a thumbs up.

"Right. That's me." We both tensed as a rush of footsteps sounded outside the door. Fran frowned, and pulled me closer to him, putting one arm over me. I blinked at the ring on his finger, now covered in indigo frames. I stiffened when the door opened, fully prepared to fight. Fran's arm tighten around me. I looked up at him and he shook his head. A Millefiore member stood in the doorway, and surveyed the small closet. I held my breath and concealed my presence, but was surprised when his eyes passed right over us.

"Clear," the man stated, then quickly shut the door. I let out a sigh after the footsteps moved on. Fran released me, and I turned to fully face him.

"What the _cào_ is going on?" I muttered irritably, the day's events finial catching up to me.

"Operation 'Save Cloud'," Fran told me, holding up a finger. "It's super secretive. Only three people are in on it," he blinked, then added. "Well, four if I count you. Hm?" He looked at my neck. "Ah, it's gone. That guy was strong after all. Even she didn't know how many flames it would take to trick him."

"Are you talking about the snake?" I asked as he moved past me, his hand on the doorknob. "What was that about?" He blinked and looked back at me, as if he was surprised by my confusion.

"Ah, I forgot," he said, hitting his hat lightly. "This is the younger Cloud. I guess that explains why your chest is so flat." My eye twitched at his comment, but he grabbed my shoulder and carted me out the door with him before I could refute.

"Do your illusions work on technology?" I asked him quietly as we bypassed our enemies with ease. My eyes lingered up to the camera in the corner of the hallway.

"Don't worry about that nee-chan," he chided. I twitched at the change of honorifics he used. "Our job is to escape." I nodded hesitantly, and continued following him. The bad thing about not having to take down enemies is that it gave me time to think about Mukuro and why I was brought to the future. However, Bykauran's words weighed the heaviest on my mind, now that I had time to actually think about him. I shuddered, remembered the fact that my future-self killed herself. Fran looked back at me, opening a door that led to a small, run down alley.

"Stop worrying, Nee-chan," he said, lightly pushing me in front of him, urging me to go forward. "Everything's going to be fine."

"How do you know that?" I asked, a bit sadly. He shrugged, then took the lead again.

"I don't," he admitted blankly. "But that's what you always told me."

* * *

><p>"I'm angry, Mukuro-kun," Byakuran seethed. "You've succeeded in one of your goals," He told the wounded, kneeling man before him.<p>

"One them?" the illusion of Mukuro repeated, still possessing the man, but well aware that this body was quickly reaching its breaking point.

"You let Cloud-chan escape," Byakuran reminded him coldly. "Do you know the work it took to get her here? I had to preserve her body for so long, after all. And right when I have her where I want, you just had to come in and ruin everything," His eyes narrowed and he glared at the illusionist. "It's almost too bad that you didn't get to see my true power. That was your other intention, wasn't it, Mukuro-kun? To gather data on the abilities I have shrouded, and bring them back to your back-up forces on the outside, was it not?"

"Ohh… what an interesting theory," Mukuro sneered.

"You won't get what you want. You've already made me angry, after all," Byakuran informed him. Mukuro swayed, trying to keep his panic form getting to him after realizing the difficulty to escape the room and retreat back to his real body. He calmed himself, already well aware of the consequences when coming here. But, he reminded himself, it was worth it, to get her out. It was worth it to keep that information from this man.

"You don't have the Vongola ring, so I have no interest in you," Byakuran stated after he explained the sealed room. "It's time for you to receive a true death." Mukuro scoffed, surprising Byakuran. The boss's eye narrowed as the illusionist chuckled hollowly, and met his glare.

"Kufufu…. And I welcome it gladly, Byakuran."

* * *

><p>"Should we really be taking public transportation at a time like this?" I muttered, looking at the normal people around us, still on red alert.<p>

"It's fine. I'm talented enough I trick them. I'm a top magician after all," Fran reminded me. "To them, we just look like normal people riding the subway." I sighed and looked away, still confused and unsure about this entire situation.

"Do you think he's okay?" I asked quietly. Fran looked at me, not having to ask who I was talking about.

"My master's strong," he assured me. "He may have a weird hairstyle and laugh, but he can take care of himself."

"If you say so…" I muttered, still dejected. Despite seeing him (well, seeing a man he was possessing), the void was still in my mind, not comforting me one bit. I was confused that we hadn't connected immediately on seeing each other, but I was convincing myself that it was because he was focusing on the battle with Byakuran. I shuddered, thinking back to the conversation with the latter. Fran poked my shoulder and I looked over at him. I blinked, staring at his jacket, which he had taken off and was now offering me.

"Don't be rude, nee-chan," he scolded me. I looked up at him, then slowly took the jacket, putting it on (Fran had helped me saw off the straitjacket earlier with the aid of Bel's knife, which was now resting reassuringly in my front pocket).

"Thanks…" I muttered, fingering the fur-trimmed hood of the Varia jacket.

"You always told me to be chivalrous," he told me. "Well, the future you did," he corrected himself. "Ah, we're here," He muttered, getting up as the subway came to a stop. He motioned for me to follow him, and we exited, eventually coming to stand in front of an old looking, run down hotel. I pulled the slightly large jacket tighter around me as we entered, bypassing the front desk completely, not drawing any attention to ourselves with the aid of illusions. We ascended the flight of stairs quickly, and I was realizing that I had been growing more and more comfortable around Fran as we spent more time together. Of course, it helped that he was completely comfortable around me as soon as we met. It was weird, though. He saw a relationship with me that I never had with him.

We slowed to a stop in front of one of the hotel room doors and Fran knocked a couple times, waited, then knocked again. The door opened almost immediately. I blinked and looked down slightly, surprised to see a young, possibly Indian girl that had to be at least two years younger than me. She smiled kindly at us and moved aside to let us enter. Fran went in without hesitation and I eventually followed.

"I see that it was successful," the girl chided, a happy twinkle in her eyes as she looked at me. "I'm glad."

"She isn't done yet?" Fran asked casually, plopping down on the bed. The girl shook her head.

"Not yet. She's throwing them completely off your trail as we speak, but should arrive as soon as it's safe for her to come." She girl blinked, then glanced at me in an apologetic manner. I glanced at her, noting the maturity in her eyes, way beyond her years. "Forgive me, miss," she said, bowing slightly. "I had forgotten that you were older when you met us. I'm Madhi, Dayita's ayah."

"Dayita?" I asked, looking in between Fran and Madhi. "Who's that?"

"I am positive that she would want to honor or introducing herself to you when she arrives, undoubtedly," Madhi said with amusement in her tone. "If you excuse me, I will go contact her. I assume that you'll replace the illusion you dispelled when you entered?" She asked, looking at Fran.

"Hm?" He looked at her blankly. "Oh, yeah," He assured her. "I'm on it." She sighed and then bowed slightly again, and exited the room.

"Who's Dayita?" I asked Fran again once the door was closed. He waved me off.

"Secret," he replied. "And she'd get mad at me if I introduced her for you. It's troublesome when she's angry…." He trailed off, going off on his own tangent, then, with a blink, he looked back at me. "While we're waiting we should reconnect," he suggested. "I doubt master can right now, but you can at least get connected to me."

"Reconnect?"

"Ah, I forgot to tell you," he hummed, looking up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "I know about the whole reincarnation, not-dying thing."

"….huh?"

"Yeah," he said casually. "You guys let me in on it a long time ago." He gave me a thumbs up. "So, let's reconnect, okay?"

"You…. You can't just throw that kind of information at me!"

"Hm? Really?" He asked, as if he truly felt bad. "Sorry." My eye twitched at the casualness he displayed.

"Whatever," I stated, already getting used to his personality. "How do we 'reconnect' then?"

"You need to mediate and let me into your mind. I think you told me once that you did this with Mammon once," he reminded me. "Just try not to lash out when I try to get in. Master let me in last time with him, so I haven't made the connected alone before."

"Great," I dryly muttered, sitting on the bed as well, and pulling my feet up on the sheets, crossing them. I took a deep breath, and closed my eyes, blocking out everything else in the room. I reminded myself that I was safe now; I was fine. I had people that looked out for me, and I still have people to look out for as well. I couldn't afford to freak out, for their sake.

I opened my eyes, not at all surprised to find myself in my mind garden. Taking another deep breath, I held back from lashing out as I felt an unfamiliar presence infiltrate. I looked over to see Fran standing, looking around with a bored expression.

"It's different somehow," he muttered. "Brighter. Huh."

"Care to explain why you're in the future?" I looked over to see a very irritated Hannah glaring at me.

"Yo, Hannah," Fran greeted, holding a hand up. I tried not to be surprised that he knew her, but a disbelieving look still managed to sneak onto my face. Hannah barely spared Fran an irritated look, and turned back to me.

"Not only do you end up in the future, but you let a complete and total stranger into your mind?"

"Ouch. I'm offended," Fran commented dryly.

"He's not a stranger," I argued. "He said that my future-self let him into her mind. He knew about this."

"You mean the idiot that killed herself," she stated harshly. I frowned, beginning to feel guilty again. "And besides, he could be lying."

"He has nothing to gain from lying to me," I pointed out. Hannah huffed and turned away. I sighed and decided to talk to Fran instead.

"So, the connection's made now?" He nodded.

"Yep. Now you have the honor of being able to see my amazing magic tricks," he said with a neutral expression.

"Great," I said numbly, looking back at Hannah. "Is there a way to contact Mukuro now?" He frowned, as if concentrating.

"I can't reach him right now," he informed me. "He might be too weak right now for communication."

"Right," I said, looking away guiltily again. "Hopefully."

"You better hope your presence didn't fuck up anything big, Cloud," Hannah sneered, looking down on me. I sighed and closed my eyes once again, not wanting, not needing to deal with her anger right now.

"She's a lot meaner than I remember," Fran commented idly, now both of us back in the physical world.

"It's not her fault," I sadly defended, bringing my knees up to hug them. "She just angry and confused."

"Ah," Fran allowed, lazily looking around the room again. I sighed and looked off again. My head snapped towards the door as it clicked open, and I managed to stop myself from lashing out as a shape dashed in and practically glomped me. I gasped, attempting to push myself away from the large chest I was being smother by, and a voice cooed me.

"Cloud-chan! I missed you so much!" I gasped for breath again, and managed to wiggle out of the woman's grip, scrambling to the other side of the bed. Fran watched this exchange with slightly widened eyes, but still did nothing to stop the assault. I blinked, taking in the dark-skinned woman's features. She might as well have been the most beautiful women I had ever seen, and I had no problem admitting that. The Indian woman giggled at my reaction, and brushed a long strand of dark hair behind her ear, which was revealed to be covered in several piercings. Her painted lips curved into a smile, and I looked at the other piercings on her face; one below her lip, two in her nose and one on her eyebrow. Her hooded eyes, brushed his a lush color and darkened with eyeliner scanned over me, as if she could barely believe I was really there.

"This is great!" She clapped her hands together, nearly bouncing from excitement. "I'm so glad you're here! You wouldn't believe the people I've had to deal with," she complained with a throw of her hand, even beautiful with an annoyed expression. "I missed having you around as the middle man, but now you're back! And you're safe," she leaned forward, grabbing my hands and pulling them toward her, "you're safe now and he can't get to you, so there's no need to do something so stupid and reckless again," her grip tightened around my hands, "no matter how justified you think it is, and no matter if you won't tell me the true reason." Her grip tightened with each word, and I stared down at her hands. She seemed to notice this, and calmed herself, taking a deep breath and releasing my hands gently.

"But, that doesn't matter now," she concluded. "All that matters is that you're safe." She gave me a dazzling smile. "And that you're still as cute as ever," she added with a wink. I blinked, not having registered even half of what just happened. "I assume everything went smoothly," she addressed Fran. He nodded. "Good," she concluded, then noticed my expression.

"Oh, honey," she cooed, reaching over to pat my cheek. "You're confused. That's okay, I can explain everything to you." I opened my mouth to ask my first question, but she interrupted me before I could.

"On the way, of course," she added, hopping up off the bed. "We've got a tight schedule after all."

* * *

><p>Ryohei's eye twitched, glaring harshly and passionately at the indifferent Cloud guardian in front of him.<p>

"In that case, we'll settle this with fists and boxes!" The sun guardian declared, raising a fist with fire in his eyes.

"That's fine with me," Hibari agreed placidly.

"Nothing can stop me… to the extreme!"

"No such thing," Kusakabe declared form his position sitting on the edge of the room. "I've been stopping you since just now! The guardians should not be fighting over such a senseless reason. Please stop," the man stated irritably.

"What do you mean by senseless reason?!" Ryohei argued back. "Why am I allowed into the residence but the kid is not? What's that all about?!"

"Truth be told, you're not welcomed either," Hibari stated calmly. "Just looking at you dampens my will to fight."

"What! I'm pissed off to the extreme!"

"All right, all right," Kusakabe attempted to calm the two, while sliding open the door behind him with one hand. "Let me take Lambo-san back to his hideout and I'll play with him over there. Please, just let it rest already."

"Oh well…." Ryohei muttered, giving Kusakabe the hope that they have dropped the subject. "We'll have one round then."

"That's fine with me."

"You will not!" Kusakabe snapped at the two. "Please, talk only! No fighting!" He sighed, and turned back to the child in front of him. "Come on then. Let's go over there and play, eh?"

"Don't you at least feel a little bad for the kid?" Ryohei tried again as Kusakabe shut the door behind him, taking Lambo back to the other side of the base. "He doesn't have anyone to play with. Maybe I should have convinced Ipin to come with me-"

"If I'm not mistaken, she's still with the bronco," Hibari cut him off. "Leave her there; she'll be safer with him." Ryohei frowned, confused at first, then remembered their relationship. He sighed in defeat, finally deciding to drop the subject and instead move onto to a more sensitive one that he knew was bothering the cloud guardian.

"It's fine to admit you miss her, Hibari," Ryohei reminded the man in front of him. Hibari frowned and glared at the boxer.

"No," he rebutted, scowling. "It's weak."

* * *

><p>"So, Cloud," Dayita started softly, putting a hand on mine. I blinked and looked over at her, no longer looking out the window of the private jet we were on. Fran didn't spare us a glance from in front of us, as he was frowning and attempting to lean back into a comfortable position in his seat, but finding it difficult to do so with the large frog hat he was wearing. "Ask me anything."<p>

"Who are you?" I asked immediately. She smiled softly, and chuckled.

"That's a good start. Do you want me to tell you how we met as well?"

"Why not?" I answered dryly, just wanting, needing to feel less confused about this information, about everything.

"I am one of the best illusionist in the world. My name is Koenig Dayita," she began, and I perked up at the name, recognizing it from somewhere. "I see you recognize my father's name," she stated, easily catching my recognition. "If you don't remember, he was one of the scientists who created working box weapons." I stared at her in slight shock, but continued to let her speak, deciding it was wise to keep quiet until she was completely done. "It will be easier to go in chronological order," she figured, "so I'll begin with how my parents came to meet."

"My mother was a successful woman," Dayita said with a proud smile. "After her father's death, she took over his business, and eventually she led it to be the top trading and transportation organizations in India and one of the most formidable in Asia. Along with her looks, I inherited her silver tongue and mist attributes. My father was a German arms-dealer and a scientist. My mother met him when while he was trading his weapons through her organization. With her keen eyes, she recognized his talents immediately and hired him to make weapons for her. She gave him his start, and with the help of her assets and organization, and his great mind and talent, he rose to great heights, eventually getting into the organization where he worked with two others on the creation of box weapons. Somewhere in all that mess, my mother and father fell in love, and me and my brother were born. I took on my mother's culture, while my brother took after our German heritage, and inherited my father's keen mind for weapons and inventing. I took more after my mother, and become one of the most powerful illusionists in the world," she concluded, adding the last part with a flick of her hand as if it weren't a big deal. I frowned, processing the information she was giving me.

"How did you become one of the best?" I asked, logically. "You can't just inherit complete and total mastery."

"My mother is smart and perceptive, as well as my ayah, who has been with my mother's family since before I can remember," She answered immediately, without having to give it much thought. "My mother and ayah taught me how to read people like children's books. It's incredibly easy to figure out what people want, and once you have that pinned, they're all too eager to believe the illusion you create for their enjoyment. That's why my top income comes from death commissions. I fake deaths for people all the time. Nothing pleases an assassin more, after all. They expect their target to die, so that's what they see. That's what I give them. In fact, my talents were a large part of the reason why you managed to save so many in the Vongola hunt," she admitted, giving me a sly look.

"I saved people?" I repeated.

"Lots," she assured me. "Of course, we couldn't save all of them, naturally. But you did all you could. Ah, we're getting of subject," she muttered. "Anyway, you got to know me through my father's work, since you and Verde worked together occasionally thanks to your unique flames. I remember feeling delighted when you approached me first, thinking it was my lucky day that someone who matched my exact type was coming over to talk to me. But, you were all business, naturally, and never accepted any of my date offerings," she sighed, pouting.

"That's because Yita's too aggressive," Fran commented. "You're terrible at flirting; you're terrifying."

"Shut it, brat," she glared over at him, a cold look in her eyes. She sighed and turned to me again, her annoyed mood completely gone. "Anyways, despite you refusing my dates, we did become quite close friends. I found it almost annoying at first when I realized you couldn't see any of my illusions, but came to accept it as a lovable quirk." She shrugged. "Then you began helping Hibari Kyoya when he began researching the box weapons and were all too happy to introduce us, although I'm almost positive both you and Kyo-chan have regretted the decision since then…." She trailed off, a devious smile on her face. "But the experiences have been loads of fun for me." I blinked, still stuck on something she said.

"Did… did you just call him Kyo-chan?"

"Your many connections helped him greatly in his travels and research," she moved on, completely ignoring my comment. "He was lucky to have you. But," She finished with a dazzling, almost sad smile. "That's my story."

"Okay," I nodded, feeling more comfortable now that I actually knew who I was dealing with. "Good to know." I scanned through my mind, trying to scavenge for more questions, but I soon came to realize that I didn't even know what I didn't know.

"What about Dino?" I asked quietly, the sad thought entering my head. "How did he take… my death?" Dayita sighed sadly and propped her head up on her arm.

"I wasn't there, so I only know from what they told me," she admitted. "But he did not take it well. Naturally. You two were close after all, and he was completely against you going to the negotiation. You managed to convince him that it would happen eventually, and, of course, you were right. It was still idiotic though, but I suppose that's just your nature, isn't it?"

"So I've been told," I agreed quietly, pulling my legs up into the chair to hug them. Fran sighed loudly, causing us to look over at him.

"If I take off this hat," He said, pointing to the large accessory on his head. "Will you keep it a secret from Bel-sempai?"

"Of course not," Dayita replied with a cold smile.

"But if I take it off and you tell him, he'll kill me," Fran argued in an unpassionate voice.

"And that will provide entertainment for me and Cloud-chan when we arrive," Dayita noted happily.

"When we arrive? We're going to see Bel?" I asked, having just become aware of our destination.

"Yes, we're heading to the Varia's base right now," Dayita allowed. "Although normally I would never associate with such vulgar people-"

"I thought you like Bel-sempai," Fran interrupted, having decided to not take the hat off and opted to lean forward, hands on his knees holding up his head instead.

"Although, like Cloud, Belphegor matches my type almost exactly, his attitude annoys me to no end-"

"Because he's just like you?" Her eyes snapped to him dangerously, and she smirked.

"Oh? What's this?" She muttered smoothly, dropping her hand to her side and gracefully bringing out a box weapon and showing off the two odd, yet extremely familiar looking rings on her hand. "Do you want to die?" Fran shook his head and held his hands up.

"Nope. No thank you," he stated. "You can put away your snake."

"So that was your snake, then?" I asked Dayita, thinking back to the small animal that had been around my neck for that short amount of time before it disappeared. She sent one more deadly look at Fran before turning to me with a smile once more.

"My box weapon," she informed me. "Mist and Cloud attributes, courtesy of my darling, genius of a brother. Ever since my brother and father went into hiding, Varick has been able to crack down and develop more mixed box weapons like yours."

"Like mine?" I repeated. Her mouth formed a small 'o' shape, as if she had just remembered something.

"Ah! I almost forgot to give you your weapons back," she chirped, reaching over for her bag under her seat. "Here are your gloves, knives and guns," she recited, handing the items to me. "And here are your rings and box weapons." I blinked, looking down at the objects in her hands. I picked up one of the boxes carefully, examining the bamboo looking pattern on the outside of it.

"These are mine?" I repeated.

"Of course. Only the best and highest quality box weapons for my Cloud," she cooed. "Specially made and unique. They had to be, especially with your sun flames. Of course, because of your sun flames, Varick was more than happy to make these for you, despite their complications."

"And what complications would those be?" I asked, still examining the box.

"You'll see," she teased with a twinkle in her eyes. "You're going to have to learn to fight with them soon enough anyway." I raised an eyebrow as she handed me the objects in her hand, but didn't question her. Even after the little time I have spent with her, I had already learned that questioning her usually led to more questions. I slipped the boxes into one of the pockets of Fran's jacket, then after deciding against wearing the three rings, I put them in as well.

"Why are we going to the Varia?" I asked curiously.

"It's the safest place for you right now," Dayita replied.

"Yeah," Fran agreed, "because there's no safer place than a base full of blood thirsty killers."

"It's also the perfect place for you to train to fight with your box weapons," Dayita added. I deflated at the word.

"More training?" I groaned. "I still haven't gotten to fully rest from last time."

"Ah, I had forgotten that you had trained with Ursa and her family around this age," Dayita mused. "I feel sorry for you; I can barely stand to spend more than five minutes around her type, let alone her entire family."

"Ursa? You mean Zhanna? She's okay?" I perked up, and looked at her.

"The Giegue survived thanks to you," Dayita informed me. "Zhanna's the boss now, but only because he siblings died before her." My stomach dropped at the news.

"All them?"

"Two of them," Dayita corrected. "However, that information is less….well known," she decided on the word with a smirk, "thanks to me. I faked her youngest brother's death, although he is in no condition to fight anymore let alone lead the family. She blames me for not saving her other siblings, but I couldn't get to them in time." She seemed unaffected by this, but for some reason, I thought otherwise. I didn't push the subject.

"But Zhanna's alive?" I repeated.

"And fighting," Dayita confirmed.

"She's always fighting," Fran inputted dryly, then he looked out the window, noticing something. "Ah, we're almost there."

"Madhi will drop us off, then we'll make our way to the base," Dayita informed me. "The entrance is hidden, naturally."

"What do you mean Madhi will drop us off?" I questioned, not having seen the girl since before we got on the small plane. "Where is she?"

"Flying the plane," Dayita answered casually. I stared at her. After a while, she seemed to notice my gaze and raised an eyebrow in response.

"She's flying the plane?"

"Yes."

"But, she's like twelve."

"Uh-huh." I blinked, still staring at her. "My ayah has been around for longer than you think, Cloud-chan," Dayita chirped happily. "Of all people, you should know; looks can be dangerously deceiving."

* * *

><p>"Byakuran-san!"<p>

"Hn."

"Don't just say 'hn'!" Irie scolded, almost hesitantly. He noticed immediately that something was off about the man. There was a glint in his eyes and vigor in his movements, even small ones. "Are you all right?"

"Hm, physically, I suppose," Byakuran stated, his features forming a grimace of sorts, "but I seemed to have had something important stolen from right under me. I'm angry, to say the least."

"Eh? Stolen?"

"Rokudo Mukuro decided to reveal himself. That's who Leo-kun really was."

"Rokudo Mukuro… you mean, the Vongola's mist guardian!? Then, Byakruan-san, did you… kill Rokudo Mukuro?"

"Well, I suppose so, but that's beside the point," Byakuran muttered, his tone becoming dark. "Mukuro-kun had the worst timing; he interrupted my meeting with Cloud Chiavarone."

"What?! Cloud Chiavarone came from the past?" Irie repeated, bewildered. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want to bother you," Byakuran shrugged. "And besides, her coming to the future was for personal reasons. Anyways, now that she's escaped, I need you to send out a message to all units to capture her, alive of course, and send her back to me."

"To all units?!" Irie stuttered. "Is she really that important?"

"Of course she is, Shou-chan," Byakuran answered with a smile that threatened to buckle Irie's knees.

"She's special, after all."

* * *

><p>"Hm?" I looked over at Dayita who was staring at me with a mischievous smile. I raised an eyebrow at her expression, not liking it one bit.<p>

"….what?"

"Oh, nothing?" She waved it off, practically skipping as we walked down the metallic hallway, just having gone through a hidden outside entrance covered in Fran's mist flames. "I'm just surprised you're not nervous or anything."

"Why would I be nervous? It's just the Varia," I stated, one hand in the pockets of Fran's jacket, messing with the boxes and rings. She giggled.

"You're weird, Cloud-chan," she cooed. "Not many people think of them as," she held up air quotations, "_just the Varia_." I shrugged in response.

"I grew up with them around," I admitted. "They're practically family to me. I highly doubt ten years is going to change that."

"Maybe, but you killing yourself might have." I narrowed my eyes, realizing she was testing my reaction, pushing me.

"You snake…" I muttered. She giggled again, smiling brightly.

"Guilty!" She sang. "That's one of the things I like about you, Cloud-chan~" She bumped my hip with her own. "You can always see through me."

"That's because Yita uses illusions on everything, even little useless things." Dayita glared coldly at Fran, who was walking in front of us. Her expression changed, howver as she approached him, swaying her hips.

"Illusions are like parlor tricks, Fran," she said, putting her arms on the back of his shoulders as he stopped in front of a door with a combination lock, her voice turning smooth and seductive. She slid her arms over his shoulders and caressed his chest. "Magic tricks, charades, used to make things beautiful, and for the purpose of enjoyment." She slid her body, until she was practically hanging off the side of him, looking up at him with hooded eyes. "If not for the victim's enjoyment," she said, gently grabbing his chin while moving her face towards his. "Then for my own." There was an awkward moment, where their faces were merely inches from each other, and I had no idea what to do. Fran broke the silence.

"I think I need an adult," he stated blankly, then turned to me. "Nee-chan, help." Dayita laughed, moving away from Fran, and turning back to me.

"You're never any fun," she teased the teen, "but your reaction was priceless, Cloud-chan!" She winked at me.

"Why do you always pick on me, huh?" Fran muttered, his words expressing that he was hurt, but his tone remaining indifferent.

"You mean this happens a lot?" I asked, shaking my head, attempting to forget the incident.

"It gets boring fast," Fran informed me as the door unlocked and slid open, revealing a much more lavish hallway, compared to the dull, metallic ones we had been walking through before.

"I like to keep my life interesting, Cloud-chan," Dayita hummed, interlocking her arm with my arm as we continued walking. "My worst fear is to find myself bored, after all."

"Hmmm…." We stopped behind Fran as he paused before opening the door. It was obviously that a somewhat large group of people was behind it, with the noise level.

"What are you waiting for?" I questioned him.

"I just remembered," he stated. "I didn't tell them you were coming."

"…. You what?" My expression deadpanned. "They don't know I'm here?"

"They don't know you came from the past," he added.

"Is that a problem?" Dayita asked, putting a hand on her hip. Fran blinked, then thought about it.

"I guess not." He grabbed me and put me in front of him, then opened the door and pushed me in first, casually stepping in behind me. "Yo, look who stopped by." I froze, the room going pen-drop silent with all eyes on me.

"What the hell?" As older Bel muttered, staring at me. I let out a nervous chuckled and scanned the room, freezing, going completely rigid when I met a pair of sad, empty, sunken brown eyes, that even ten years later, were still all too familiar. My bottom lip quivered, the fact that my older-self killed herself and left him all alone coming rushing back to me.

"C-Cloud…." He muttered, shakily pushing himself up form where he was sitting. I feared he was going to break down right then and there, with how fragile and broken he looked. I let out a shallow breath and greeted my brother.

"….Dino."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**God I love Dayita. As a character, of course, because I'd hate her in real life.I decided to use Fran in stead of Flan, because that confused me enough as it is, and that's what fanfiction has him listed as. Eh. **

**Shit, you guys are going to hate me so much for leaving it there, but I realized that if I went any further, I would be up all night, because I really want to get this out before I go back to school for the week and get avalanched with work and prom. I know I said this last chapter, but next chapter should be longer since it consists of angst and training. Huh, those are two things Cloud is very familiar with, so she should be fine... HA. I kind of feel bad for giving out shorter chapters (as opposed to the usually average 10 to 11,000 I usually give out), but I'm hoping the quick update made up for that. I'm excited because I'm getting closer to be able to post this omake I've had saved for a while, but I needed to wait for the introduction of Fran to do it. Perhaps next chapter...?**

**Sorry, not sorry about the cliffhanger (again. HA), love you all. **

**Anyone want to guess what her box weapons will be (except for the person I cleared the idea with, you get no guesses, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE)? Hint: they are adorable and I love them both. **

**Review Responses:**

**Yuka Tsukino: **Thanks for the love! And here's an update that was actually relatively quick (don't know how long that streak will last though). Thanks for the review!

**Prince-ZuChiRu:**

**(Chapter 32):** I love cliff hangers. I feed off the anger and resentment of my readers, and cliff hangers are an essential tool for that.

**(Chapter 12):** You win the award for the review that made me laugh the hardest. Very punny, congratulations.

**(Chapter 7):** Dude, you being Chinese makes you more fit to write this stuff than me. I am 100% sugar cookie American white.

Thanks for all the reviews!

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** It's sad? Then I must listen to it and watch the video. I _must_. Feel free to message anytime, and thanks for the review!

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** I know, man, I just had to go with my most recent, because I have favorite songs that can fall under categories, but I couldn't choose one over all. Songs that make you feel good are great. Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Allykrau:** Dude, I don't need to get higher than those paint fumes got me, although it did make for some interesting conversations. There comes a point where there's too much of everything, and fan service has passed that point too many times. Thanks for the love and review!

**RaNDoem:** I have a love-hate relationship with Mukuro; he comes easy to write, but dear god is a he an ass. Thanks for answering the question (I'll be sure to check that song out) and for reviewing!

**XxSaphirezxX:** Gosh golly gee whiz, I hope he can save her too. And nobody knows what Hibari's thinking. Not even Hibari knows what Hibari's thinking, but I'm guessing that it has to do with something along the lines of herbivores and biting people to death. Thanks for the review.

**Uniquemangelover:** THANKS SO MUCH! I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE SASS BATTLES EITHER. SASS IS ALWAYS fun. THANKS FOR THE SONG, I'LL BE SURE TO CHECK IT OUT. THANKS FOR THE REVIEW, AS ALWAYS.

**WinterStormArt:** This whole arc kind of suck for Cloud in general. I mean, I'm basically torturing her, especially at the beginning. Here's a relatively quick update. Too bad it ends with a semi-cliffhanger again. Sorry, not sorry. Thanks for the song, I'll be sure to check it out! Thanks for the review!

**GlassedGamer:** I'm eager to see if your prediction comes true (whatever that prediction may be). Thanks for reviewing and love the username!

**Ddmahan922: **I'm seriously thinking of having a poll later on in the story (like, waaaay later) just to see what the popular opinion is about who the readers want Cloud to get with (although I already have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to do). But you, dear reader, are the first that's told me they might want Cloud with Mukuro. Congratulations. And hey, she has a harem anyway, so having three guys is not a stretch for her. Thanks for reviewing!

**VanillaMilkshake18**: Aw, I love you too, baby! I'm trying to cram all the updates in as possible because of guilt and I want to get this motherfucking arc rolling. And, not I will not treat you warmly. I'm a cold and distant mother, after all. Ah, I love the smell of character development in a story. And yes, they do grow up fast. Sigh. Thanks for the review, brat!

**Guests:**

**(Chapter 7):** And I find it personally fucking awesome that you think it's fucking awesome and it's fucking awesome that you reviewed! Thanks!

**(Chapter 32):** Yes, I'm female. Thanks for asking, that was very kind. And you can totally call me mom. I've already adopted another reader, might as well make this a family. I will be Mom. Thanks for reviewing!

**(Chapter 32) Klu's child**: Yeah, I probs did spell it wrong. I'm not surprised. I'm really bad with words that have vowels that are right beside each other, and end up placing the vowels wrong. Thanks for letting me know! I'll try my best to put the twins in if they fit, because I love them too! And nah, that wasn't a reply; it was more like a header for the 'guest' section, like this one is. Then, unless they give me a name, I put what chapter they reviewed on. Thanks for letting me know though! And thanks for the review!

**(Chapter 32) Catrina:** Thanks so much! I'm glad you like her life so much. You're making me blush, saying it's the best and all. Shucks. Here's an update, that's actually quick for once. Thanks for the review!

**Question:**

**A work of fiction that is very important to/you feel extremely connected to?**

**It can be any medium; books, tv, anime, podcast, it does not matter. Just as long as it had some kind of deep meaning for you. **

The Legend of Korra. Oh my fucking god, Korra's so important to me. I grew up watching it's predecessor series, Avatar: the Last Airbender, and I loved it as a kid, and thought it was fun. It had a lot of deep meaning in the show and taught me a lot and I fell in love with the characters. Then, it ended, and years later, they came out with the Legend of Korra. I loved it from the first episode and on, but it reached a deeper level for me that Avatar did. Maybe it was just because I was older when I watched Korra, or that I related so much to the 'coming of age' theme in it, but I knew it was special from book one. And then, it ended. Korra ended in the most perfect way, and even now, after having watched the finale nearly 50 times, I still bawl and lose control for about twenty minutes afterwards. (SPOILERS FOR THE ENDING) Korra ended with her walking off with another female lead, almost literally walking into the sunset to start a romantically relationship. In the end, the hero, a strong-willed female lead that grew from a hot headed warrior to an experienced leader in every way and right, got the girl, a beautiful dark haired, genius, mechanic beauty who Korra had been growing extremely close to from book one. For one of the first time ever, I truly felt rightfully represented and to see that in Korra, a character who I grew to admire and look up to so much, to see that she was bisexual was _so_ important to me.

Fuck, I'm literally tearing up as I'm writing this. So, yeah, that's the work of fiction that's the most important to me. So, what about you guys?

-Klu


	34. What Careless Words Do

**Chapter 34: What Careless Words Do**

* * *

><p><strong>"D'you know what happens when you hurt people?' Ammu said. 'When you hurt people, they begin to love you less. That's what careless words do. They make people love you a little less."<strong>

**― Arundhati Roy, _The God of Small Things_**

* * *

><p>"….Dino," I breathed out, almost relieved, but still completely rigid, not knowing what to do in this situation. I was well aware of the others' eyes on me in the room, but I could only focus on him, my brother standing barely a few feet away ready collapse at the slightest movement. He was broken; shattered even, and it was all my fault.<p>

"What the hell are you guys trying to pull?" I glanced over, my heart sparking up again as I noticed an older Bel with a scowl on his face. "If this is some sick illusion-"

"Don't worry, Bel-sempai," Fran reassured him, patting my shoulders, then pulling at my cheek. "This is the real deal." My eye twitched as he did this and I momentarily broke out of my blank stare to give him an irritated glance.

"Even I'm not low enough to make an illusion like this," Dayita admitted smoothly. Her eyes wandered the room, and a small smirk graced her features. "I suppose you would like an explanation?"

"Fuck yeah, we need an explanation!" I was almost startled as an older Squalo rose harshly from his seat. "No one told us that a younger Cloud would be coming from the past," he growled, his eyes angry, tinted with the slightest bit of confusion.

"We barely found out in time," Dayita admitted casually, with a small wave of her hand. "And even then, only three of us were a part of the rescue mission. Any more involved and it wouldn't have worked," Yita drawled.

"Master arranged it all," Fran added, after I had swatted his hand away. "but only talented illusionists like us would be able to get in and out."

"And even then, that guy is most likely dead," Dayita added lightly, making my stomach twist even more, reminding me of his sacrifice.

"Rokudo Mukuro's dead?" Squalo repeated, his eyes narrowing. Yita shrugged.

"Perhaps," she stated indifferently, raising her hand to inspect her nails in a bored manner, "you can never know for sure with that guy."

"Why…" Yita blinked, then glanced over at Dino, who was still standing rigid as the conversation moved between him. "Why would you bring her here? Why is she here in the future?"

"Hm?" Yita raised a delicate eyebrow. "Who knows? Mukuro probably has the answer, but he's not exactly available at the moment." Dino's hurt eyes turned back to me and I almost reached out to him. I hesitated, my hand barely moving forward and him flinching ever so slightly. I looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes, not wanting to hurt him anymore, not wanting to be the cause of the immense pain I saw in his eyes. A door opened, and two figures waked in, stopping their conversation as they picked up the atmosphere in the room immediately. I looked over, looking for any distraction at the moment, recognizing Lussaria, but the other person moved towards me before I could properly identify them.

"Jiě jie! I missed you so much!" I blinked as the girl embraced me, greeting me in Chinese.

"Ipin?" I questioned, recognizing a ten-years later Ipin looked at me with tears welling in the corners of her eyes. She nodded, biting her bottom lip.

"Cloud? Why is a younger Cloud here?" Lussaria asked, looking around the room.

"That's what we're trying to figure out," Squalo said darkly, barely glancing up at the man, then returned to staring at me.

"I don't care why she's here, or if she's younger," Ipin said, her arms tightening around me. "I'm just glad that she's here and safe!" Dino blinked, then almost fell back into his seat, a new look washing over his face, leaving an almost guilty expression. Bel frowned, and looked back over at me.

"Did you meet him? Byakuran?" I nodded, the focus completely on me. Ipin released me but looped her arm around mine and stood beside me, as if she didn't want to let me go.

"What the fuck did he want with you?" Squalo asked. "Did he say?"

"He said that I had some information," I said, deciding to give them the truth, if only half of it. "But I didn't know what he was talking about." Squalo hummed, hand on chin, looking at the ground thoughtfully. He rose again and walked passed me, ruffling my head as he did.

"We'll find out eventually," he said, "glad you're safe, brat. I'm going to tell boss about this," he announced before he exited, "I'm sure he'll find this…. interesting." I watched him go, feeling a little relief flow through me, now that one less person was staring me down, as if they were frustrated that I was here more than anything. I dared not glance over at Bel and Dino, two of the most important people in my life that acted like they hated me at the moment. Ipin's arm tightened, pulling me out of my heavy thoughts.

"I'm glad you're safe, Jiě jie," She muttered, putting her head on my shoulder and closing her eyes, "I missed you so much. Both of you…"

"Are you hurt?" I blinked, then looked over at Bel, who was making his way across the room towards us. I shook my head, and he sighed, then smirked, but I had a feeling that it was forced. "Good; we couldn't have the younger princess getting hurt, now could we?" I forced a smile as well, deciding to play along. I looked at Dino once more, who looked away. Ipin frowned, realizing we both weren't ready for this. None of us were prepared. She stepped forward and tugged my arm, forcing me to walk with her.

"I'll help you settle in, Jiě jie!" She said happily, then turned to Lussaria," There's an empty room beside mine that she can have, right?"

"O-of course, dear!" Lussaria agreed, unprepared by the question, and still shocked by my arrival. Then again, Ipin seemed like the only one who was handling my arrival well, and that was a feat in itself.

"I'll take you there then," Ipin informed me with a bright smile, now walking backwards and dragging me forward.

"I'll take my leave as well," Yita announced, seemingly unaffected and extremely chalant even with the tense atmosphere. "There's someone I need to contact, after all…" she trailed off, heading for the door on the opposite wall and exiting without a goodbye. I looked back at Dino and Bel before Ipin carted me away, regretting and not knowing what to do about this entire situation, and knowing that it was all my fault.

"Ipin," I called softly as we walked through the hallway, not looking over at the girl walking by my side, "thank you." The looked at me with large, sympathetic eyes, knowing exactly what I was thanking her for.

"It's the least I can do, after all you're done for me," she replied with a soft smile. "And besides, I'm truly happy you're here. I just wish the others thought the same, but they like to complicate things," she sighed.

"Why are you here?" I asked her next, recalling that in the original plot, she was in Japan with the others.

"Well," she started, scratching her head awkwardly and a sad look slipping onto her face, "after master… after master passed, you took full custody of me and took me in." I blinked and frowned, having forgotten that Fon was dead in this world. My fist clenched, the concept fully hitting me. "And so I spent a lot of time with you, Dino and Kyoya-san," she continued, "it was a lot of fun, and we helped each other get through master's death, but… then you died," she recalled sadly, "and I didn't know what to do. Dino looked after me from then on, since he felt responsible for me after you died. I'm glad he did, but he's still upset over what happened. It's sad," she concluded. "He's been so sad for so long." My gut twisted and I looked away from her guiltily.

"I'm sorry," I apologized. She turned to me and grabbed my hands, her sudden movements startling me.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Jiě jie!" She called me out in a forced tone. "I know you and right now you're blaming yourself for all of this, and that's not it at all. You have nothing to apologize for," she snapped, resolve in her eyes. I blinked, not expecting this.

"Sor-" I stopped myself as she gave me another stern look. I smiled awkwardly at her, resisting the urge to apologize again, and instead opting to remain quiet. She puffed her cheeks and look away.

"You're still the same, Jiě jie," she complained, releasing my hands and moving to a door a few feet away from us. Her expression softened as she put her hand on the handle, "but, I guess that's just a part of you, isn't it?" I followed her into the room with a sigh.

"Is this where you're staying?" I asked, noticing the room already seemed inhabited. She nodded, then returned to digging through a bag.

"I wanted to give this back to you before I forgot," She replied, her expression lighting up as she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a leather bound notebook and handed it to me. I received it, holding it tenderly, not knowing what to make of the object. "It's yours," Ipin informed me, looking at it longingly. "I was scared when you gave it to me to keep safe," she admitted awkwardly, "and I was right to be, since that was you saying goodbye." I frowned, not liking the fact that my death has become a constant topic of conversation.

"What is it?" I asked, hoping to change the subject as I opened the notebook.

"Notes from your future self," Ipin explained. "Most of it's about flames and your boxes. I think you gave those to Zhanna and Kyoya though…"

"Dayita gave them to me," I informed her, bringing the objects out of my coat as evidence. She blinked at them, the smiled brightly.

"So you have them? That's great! Then we have time for you to get to know them before the attack!"

"The attack?" I repeated, eyebrow raised. Ipin nodded.

"The Vongola retaliation against the Millefiore," she informed me. "It's happening in five days."

* * *

><p>"The fuck do you want?"<p>

"As always, you have the most graceful greetings, Zhanna," Dayita replied coolly as the Russian on the screen in front of her stared the illusionists down. "I just assumed that you would like to be informed about Cloud arriving from the past, but if you don't want to associate with me, I u-"

"Shut the fuck up and explain, bitch," Zhanna sneered, her eyes narrowing. Dayita's lip curled, knowing that she had the boss's full attention.

"That doesn't make sense, Zhanna!" A figure popped up behind Zhanna, leaning over the back of the couch she was seated on.

"You can't tell someone to shut up and then explain!" Another figure inputted, popping up on the assassin's other side. Zhanna's eye twitched and she turned to them.

"Fuck off, you two!" She barked, causing Dayita to giggle.

"I had forgotten you had such amusing cousins, Zhan-chan," the Indian mused.

"You said something about Cloud, right?" Sasha asked, mirroring their twin as the two jumped over the couch to sit beside their cousin, whose eye merely twitched in response.

"She's come to the future? That's great!" Shura piped.

"Like hell it's great," Zhanna snapped at them, mentally reminding herself not to wring their necks then and there. "She killed herself so Byakuran couldn't get to her. Now, that her younger self is here, that means nothing."

"Oh? What's this?" Dayita sneered, a cold aura surrounding her that caused even the twins to quiet. "You don't think I can protect her?"

"Her death better not have been for nothing," Zhanna shot back, matching the illusionist's aura with her own glare. "Although I'd love to see the brat to knock some sense into her, her presence doesn't affect the plan," Zhanna continued after a tense silence. "Let the Varia know that we'll go on with the attack on our front, and meet up if there's time."

"You sure you guys can handle it?" Dayita purred, titling her head and smiling in a mocking manner. "There's so few of you now, after all. Oh, how far the once great Giegue has fallen."

"Fuck off," Zhanna growled. "It's not like you've been much help, being the failure of an illusionists you are." Dayita frowned, not liking being reminded of the incident.

"One out of two isn't failure, Ursa," she reminded the woman on the screen coldly.

"It sure is in my eyes," Zhanna growled back. The twin's remained silent through this exchange, knowing not to get in their dispute. "And you better not fucking fail in protecting her," Zhanna reminded the Indian with narrowed eyes. "I'll come after you and rip you to shreds personally."

"Of course," Dayita smiled, returning to her causal mood, and completely forgoing her dangerous aura. "I'll be sure to oversee her protection _personally_."

* * *

><p>"Bel-sempai?" Prince the ripper gave no heed to the illusionist as he continued to throw knifes at the Millefiore symbol printed on the paper stuck to the wall. "You okay, sempai?" Fran asked again. "Aren't you happy that nee-chan's back?" The knife throwing became more vigorous as the prince frowned, mentally asking himself the same question. He scowled and flames glittered on the blade of his knife, hitting his target with potency, and catching the symbol on fire, quickly turning the paper into nothing but ashes. Bel clicked his tongue and pushed himself up, the scowl still evident on his face, and left the room in a storm, pushing roughly past Lussaria as he entered. Lussaria frowned and looked at Fran.<p>

"What's wrong with Bel?" Fran shrugged in response, as blasé as ever and plopped down on the couch where the prince was formerly sitting.

"I don't know," he admitted truthfully, "but he got all mad when I mentioned Nee-chan."

"Oh," Lussaira said, putting a hand on his cheek, "I forgot! You weren't there were you?" Fran looked back at him, slightly raising an eyebrow in question. "Bel and Cloud had a fight right before…. Well, right before she died," Lussaria recalled with a frown.

"A fight?" Fran repeated, in a tone as close to disbelief as he could get. Lussaria nodded sadly.

"It was awful," Lussuria noted. "They were arguing and yelling; in fact, I'm pretty sure it was the first and only fight they had." Fran blinked taking in this information, almost not believing that the two in question ran into conflict.

"What was it about?" Fran asked logically.

"I don't know for sure," Lussaria started with a sad sigh, "but, from what I gathered, it was about her going to negotiate with Byakuran."

"Ah," Fran said, "so sempai thought that he could stop her?"

"Mm-hm," Lussaria hummed in agreement, still frowning.

"That's stupid," Fran stated blankly, leaning his head back and staring at the ceiling. "No one can stop nee-san when her mind's made up."

"With how close they were, you would think he'd learn that by now," Lussaria noted, putting a hand on his cheek. "But it's sad. And now that younger-Cloud's here, it must be driving him mad. It's bothering all of us," Lussaria pointed out. "It's so strange to see her now, even if she is younger. It's not natural, especially since a lot of us just accepted her death. Poor Bel…. Poor Dino. He has it worse than anyone, to see his dead sister again."

"She's not the same," Fran corrected.

"Hm?"

"She's not his younger sister," Fran restated, not even bothering to look at Lussaria. "This is the Cloud from ten years ago; not the Cloud that died. They're two completely different people," Fran explained stoically, "not the same person at all."

* * *

><p>I laughed, and held out a hand, which Ipin gladly took. I pulled her up and patted her on the shoulder.<p>

"As I expected," I hummed, wiping the small bit of sweat off my brow, "your skills are amazing."

"I feel like I should be saying that, jiě jie," Ipin corrected me. "I had forgotten you were so strong." I laughed.

"Strong? Me?" I waved my hand in the air dismissively. "I'm just fresh out of training; still on high alert," I brushed it off, putting my hands behind my head. "Anyways, I'm glad I went into this expecting a lot out of you. Even when you were little, you showed so much potential." Ipin blushed and looked away, embarrassed by my praise.

"It's nice sparring with you again, jiě jie," Ipin added, smiling softly. "I have always enjoyed our spars, even though I never won," she laugh light-heartedly, then she scratched her chin and added, "and I kind of wanted to see where you were at, since you were younger. The older you… she stopped fighting for a long time. She was always too busy to spar, and she spent most her time negotiating. I had always wondered why she even bothered with box weapons…" she trailed of sadly. I frowned, once again being reminded of the awkwardness and sadness my mere presence caused.

"Ah, that's right," I brought up, attempting to change the subject, "you were going to teach me about these box weapons, right?" Ipin blinked, then nodded quickly, blushing.

"Sorry, jiě jie," she apologized. "I had forgotten why we came in here in the first place."

"So you know about these box weapons?" I asked, walking over to the jacket I had placed in the corner of the training room and bringing out the boxes and rings.

"Well," Ipin started, her eyes darting away, "kind of." I blinked at her, giving her a confused look as I walked back.

"What do you mean _kind of_?" I questioned her.

"You- your older self didn't really use them that much," she admitted sheepishly, "and so I've only ever seen her open them once, and that was back when you-she first got them. So, I just know them from when I was introduced to them," Ipin explained, then concluded, "so I've never seen them in battle. Maybe Miss Dayita would know more about them," she tried, "since it was her brother who helped design them. I remember you saying that they were specially made for you." I groaned loudly.

"I really don't want to go looking for Yita," I complained, having a feeling that it would take some time to find her, especially if she didn't want to be found. "Let's just jump straight into it," I suggested, putting on the rings. Ipin frowned.

"I don't think that's good idea," she warned. I waved her off, admiring the rings on my fingers.

"Sure it is," I assured her, holding up the purple colored box. Ipin blinked in surprised as purple flames lit up one of the rings on my finger.

"You've used flames before?"

"I've already worked with Verde on summoning flames," I informed her, "and with the amount of concentration it takes to use my gloves, summoning flames to light a ring is nothing. I just put the flames in the box, yeah?" She nodded hesitantly. I stared at the flames, then the box, wondering again if this was a good idea.

"Maybe we should wait on Miss Dayita, or someone else that knows what the boxes do," Ipin suggested. I frowned, not wanting to deal with others, who seem to only want to think of me as dead; they were still mourning me, I realized all at once. They were still mourning me, even though I was right in front of them. And that offended me, I came to the conclusion. That fact offended me for a reason that I couldn't quite place.

"I don't want to deal with them," I admitted truthfully I scowled, and glared at the flames, which sparked, feeding off the emotions and frustrations I was putting into it. I shoved the flames into the opening before I could change my mind. I dropped the box and scrambled back as bamboo shoots sprung out of it. I only hoped Ipin did the same as more bamboo filled the space in front of me, forcing me to retreat. Tripping over my own feet and my vision becoming unfocused, I fell to the floor, my breath becoming labored and panic getting to me as the bamboo continued to grow, harshly penetrating the wall closest to it. I blinked, then looked down at the ring, still lit with purple flames on my finger. I eventually had enough sense to stop feeding flames into the ring, which in turn, caused the bamboo to stop growing. I let out a relieved, large breath of air, and fell back to where I was laying on the floor, feeling rather weak and clammy.

"….Ipin?" I called out hesitantly, once I got my breath back.

"I'm okay, jiě jie!" A small voice called from the other side of the mass of bamboo my box weapon had made. I pushed myself up, ignoring the dizziness as a result. I blinked, staring at the large clump of bamboo that took up an impressive portion of the room. Once I was no longer concerned about Ipin, who was now navigating her way through the edge of the clump, jumping over the shoots that had lodged themselves into the wall, I examined the damage they- _I _did. It scared me actually, I realized when I saw how easily the shoots broke through the wall. I glanced down at the ring in my hand, then back to the fallen box in front of the clump where I had previously dropped it. Did my box weapons really have that much power?

"You look terrible!" Ipin frowned, running over to me, now clear of the mess I had made. "Are you okay?"

"I think so?" I tried, gladly excepting her hand and pulling myself up. "A little light headed, but fine," I assured her, and yet still feeling clammy and slightly woozy. Ipin's eyes narrowed and her frown deepened.

"I'm taking you to Lussaria," She concluded, throwing my arm over her shoulder and slipping her own around my waist.

"Whoa, whoa," I called, attempting to pull myself back, but finding her grip around my waist rather hard to break. "Come on, Ipin," I reasoned with her, giving her a weak smile, "I'm fine! I'm totally fine," I said again, still pushing away from her.

"You're an idiot if anything, Jie jie!" she retorted, her features beginning to turn angry. "I told you we should have waited, and now you're weak from flame exhaustion!"

"I wouldn't go as far to call it flame exhaustion," I argued. "Trust me, this is nothing, compared to what I've done before." Her expression dead-panned and I froze.

"jiě jie," she muttered, "you really are an idiot." I sighed in defeat, and gave up trying to fight against her, letting myself lean against her as we made our way out of the room.

"I know, mèi mei."

* * *

><p>"Darling, you're so beat up!" Lussaria whined, as he prodded my side. I winced, and leaned away, opting to looking around the infirmary as opposed to meeting the accusing stares of the other two occupants of the room. "Why on earth do you have so many injuries?"<p>

"Give me a break," I argued, crossing my arms so he could no longer poke at my midsection, now dressed with new bandages along with my torso, "I just got out of training," I excused myself lamely.

"What kind of training were you even going through?" Ipin asked, frowning and taking one last peek at my bandages before I moved put my shirt back on.

"Okay, so maybe the training was a bit extreme," I started, only to be cut off by Lussaria.

"Hun', you have half healed stab wounds covering your sides," He reminded me.

"But, it was worth it," I continued, shooting him a soft glare. "What I got form the training was worth it. And besides, I'm totally fine now. Flame exhaustion totally gone."

"I suppose so," Lussaria hummed thoughtfully. "All the symptoms are completely gone now. But, those wounds still bother me, especially that older one on your chest; it's has such a strange pattern, I can only guess what you got it from."

"Zhanna," I said with a sigh. "I got it from Zhanna."

"You mean Ursa? I thought you two were on good terms." Ipin paled, and she gave me knowing look.

"That wouldn't happen to be form the time she 'defibrillated' you, would it?" She questioned hesitantly.

"It's exactly from the time she defibrillated me," I affirmed her. "And it was not pleasant at all, so I wouldn't like to dwell on it." I turned to Lussaria again. "Now, are you done mothering over me? I want to get back to training with m-"

"Why is she in the infirmary?" The three of us blinked, and looked at the doorway, where an angered Dino stood, with Romario behind him. I winced as our eyes met, and looked away, not even daring to look at Romario to see the hurt and shock in his eyes I just _knew_ were there. "Is she hurt? What happened?" My fist tightened, and I didn't even bother looking up at him. The time it took for Lussaria to examine me only gave me more time to dwell on their treatment of me since I had arrived, which meant my frustrations and angers had only grown stronger. Ipin and Lussaria were tolerable, and yet, I still caught them looking at me with sad looks; as if they were still in mourning. They _were_ still mourning my death, I corrected myself. I was ashamed that I was angry because of that.

"Why do you care?" I mumbled. His movements froze. "Why do you even care?" I asked, louder, actually looking up at him with angry eyes. He flinched, not even wanting to look his dead sister in the eyes; not wanting to look me in the eyes. "Everyone has been treating me like I'm dead since I've came here," Ipin looked away guiltily as I pointed this out and Lussaria shifted away, frowning, "and you haven't even bothered to try to talk to me since you saw me," I reminded him, knowing how cold I was being towards him, but now, in this moment not caring. His hollow eyes looked away and I scowled at the reaction, realizing he was going to keep this up, realizing he was going to continue to avoid this problem and not even try to face me, not even going to look me in the eyes just because I reminded him of someone I wasn't. I blinked, feeling this was all too familiar. I pushed myself off the bed, and stormed passed him, understanding all at once why I hated this; why I couldn't stand seeing my brother like this. I nearly pushed past Romario, not bothering to meet his sad gaze. I didn't look back, I couldn't possible look back as I came to this sickening realization.

"You're just like Papa."

* * *

><p>"Why can't I cry..?" I muttered sadly, hugging my knees and leaning against the back of the door to my temporary room. "Why can't I cry when I need to the most?" I was well aware of the fact that I had never been the one to cry. That was always been Dino's role after all; he was the emotional sibling out of the two of us, and yet, now I feel that I have been underhanded in a way. I wish I could cry. "It sure would help," I mumbled miserably, glancing around the room once more, not wanting to go outside of the boundaries I had set for myself. I didn't want to deal with anyone at the moment. All the people I had been close to in my timeline considered me dead, and the few who didn't look at me like I was a ghost, I felt like I didn't know. There was no comfort in this future. I laid my head on my knees once more, going back over the conversation (could I even call it that?) with Dino early. I scowled, disappointed in myself, feeling extremely guilty for my harsh words.<p>

_But they were true. Everything you said was true._

I frowned, knowing the thought was not my own.

"The last thing I need is your voice in my head, Hannah," I reminded her out loud. My wandered around the room once more, narrowing when they landed on a familiar notebook on the bed. Pushing myself up and walking over to retrieve it. I opened it up and began scanning the pages, instantly recognizing my own familiar scrabble, switching between different languages. My eyes drank in the information regarding flames and my own box weapons. Eventually I sat down on the bed while taking in this information, making a note to try these steps and theories out, eager to see the sketches of my box weapons come to life and be able learn how to use them.

"I might as well do what I do best," I muttered, brushing a lock of hair behind my ear as I quickly scanned the pages, flipping through them with ease, "and throw myself into training."

* * *

><p>"Okay," I said, picking up the previously discarded box weapon, now back in the training room I managed to nearly wreck early. "Let's see if this actually works." I scanned over the page of the book once more and then put it down, taking a deep breath before I put my lit ring into the box again, this time, completely and totally focused. The box opened and I put a hand on the bamboo, feeling a rush of energy, as the shoots phased into flames, and a majority retreating back into the box, leaving the rest to be transferred with me. My eyes widened and I moved my fingers tenderly, exhilarated by the rush of energy I received from the dormant flames that resided in the shoots I had created early when I unknowingly unlocked the box's defense. I smiled widely, and then let out a laugh, overjoyed by the small bit of control and understanding I now had over the box. I sighed happily, then refocused on my new task. I lit up my ring, purple and blue flames dancing to life vibrantly, and focused just as the notebook stressed. I placed the rings into the box's opening once more, watching as flames leapt out of the box and a shape formed in front of me. I wisely remembered to stop feeding flames into the ring once the shape about a foot taller than me, recalling the consequences the notebook had warned of if I continued to give it flames. I looked up, meeting a large pair of dark eyes staring down at me, brimming with curiosity.<p>

"Jian?" I asked the giant panda in front of me, hoping I got the name right. He sniffed once, and then promptly enveloped me in his arms, practically wailing and nuzzling his snout into my neck. I wriggled and writhed in his strong grip, attempting to push my face out of his fur in order to breathe. "Jian!" I called as he wailed more. I swear there were tears in his eyes and he hugged me tighter. "Jian, stop! I can't breathe!" I gasped as I was once again submerged in his fur. He stopped as my words seemed to reach him. He released me, then plopped down himself, sitting in front of me and looking at me guiltily, sniffing pathetically. I held up a hand, catching my breath as I leaned on my knees. He sniffed again, and rubbed his nose. He poked me lightly in the shoulder, as if checking to make sure he's okay. I looked up at him, and let out a relieved laugh.

"That notebook was right," I said, plopping down on the ground as well. "You're just a big crybaby, aren't you?" He grumbled and put both his paws over his snout, as if he were pouting. I laughed at his actions. "That was because you missed me, huh?" I asked quietly. He nodded. "You won't treat me like I'm dead, will you?" I asked, a bit sadly. He huffed, and patted me on the head. Then pulled me closer to give me a much gentler hug. I blinked, then hugged him back. "I'll take that as a no," I muttered. He released me, then looked around as if confused. He called softly, then turned to me, looking me over. I was confused as he poked my jacket pocket, trying to tell me something.

"You're looking for Kashi, aren't you?" I realized, pinpointing his distress. He made a happy sound and patted me on the head once more. I huffed at his actions, already feeling much more welcomed by my box weapons that my own friends and family. I brought out the both, identical to Jian's with the exception of color. The panda watched intently as my sun ring sparked with yellow flames, and I inserted it into the box, focusing once more. A much smaller shape was released and was formed out of sun flames in front of us. I leaned forward as a red panda, its fur glittering with sun flames, uncurled itself as stretched, soon noticing me as well. It blinked at me, and stood up on its hind legs. I froze as its paws stretched out, cupping my face. Kashi leaned forward and sniffed me once, almost touching my nose. Then, her features became almost angry, and I was promptly smacked by one of her small paws. I blinked, then gingerly touched the small marks she had left on my cheek as Kashi began angrily chattering at me. She promptly crossed her arms and looked away from me. I looked between her and Jian, confused by what had just happened.

"I'm sorry?" I tried, assuming that the red panda was waiting for an apology. She huffed, then barely turned back to me. She snorted, sighed, and dropped down to pad over to me, chattered, and patted me on the arm. "Does that mean I'm forgiven?" I asked her, becoming slightly amused by her antics at this point. Kashi huffed, and jutted her chin up. I laughed and petted her head. She shook it violently, and gave me an angry look. Jian huffed and scooped the smaller animal in his arms. She squeaked as he did so, and looked almost embarrassed as he cuddled her, obviously missing her as well. I laughed, feeling happy for once, and perhaps truly happy for the first time since I had arrived in the future.

"I like you guys," I commented, giggling as Kashi squirmed out of Jian's grip and sprinted into my arms. I laughed again, and gently petted her head, and she preened in response. Jian rolled to his feet and padded softly over, leaning his rather large head on my shoulder lovingly. "I think we'll get along just fine."

* * *

><p>My eye twitched as my cheek was poked once again, and I lifted my hand to bat away the perpetrator.<p>

"Kashi," I whined tiredly, "I told you I'm just resting my eyes…."

"I'm hurt, nee-chan. You've already forgotten my name." I batted my eyes, and groggily sat myself up, knowing for sure that that was not Kashi responding.

"Fran…" I mumbled, then blinked again, recognizing my mind garden. I look over at Fran sitting next to me, and Hannah in front of me, who looked away guiltily, almost as if she were embarrassed for some reason or the other. "Dammit," I muttered, rubbing my eyes, "I must have fallen asleep while training."

"I'm not surprised, nee-chan," Fran noted blankly, "You snuck out pretty late to go train, after all."

"I had to wait until at least Ipin went to bed," I explained myself. "I didn't want to deal with anyone." Someone chuckled from behind me, the noise all too familiar and recollecting.

"Kufufu….Oh? So you don't even want you deal with me?" A voice called form behind me. I blinked, and relief washed through me. I turned around almost hesitantly, on the verge of disbelief. Mukuro Rokudo, ten years older than the teen I was so familiar with, gave me a coy smirk as I turned to full face him.

"It's been too long, Little Chiavarone, too long indeed."

* * *

><p><strong>Haru's Haru-Haru Interveiw, Dangerous!<strong>

"Yes! Welcome back to Haru's Haru-Haru Interveiw, dangerous!" the young girl announced from the stage. "Today our guest is a good friend of mine, and close to many others."

"It's amazing how many people she knows," Reborn chirped form his chair, "with how anit-social she was growing up."

"I see you're already insulting me," a voice called down as a figure was lowered in the box.

"And here she is now," Haru called, gesturing to her as the container met the ground, "Cloud-chan! But," she said, looking between Reborn and Cloud, "I didn't know you two knew each other growing up."

"Of course," Reborn started, "I trained her older brother Dino, so she grew up watching my methods, and even helped out at times."

"Don't you mean forced me to help you out," Cloud corrected with sigh, crossing her arms and leaning on the railing of the box she was lowered in, "I didn't exactly help by my own will."

"So, Cloud-chan!"

"Hm?"

"Since we're on the subject of you're childhood, what did you like to do?"

"Like hobbies and stuff?" the girl repeated, tilting her head. Her eyebrows knitted as she thought. She hummed thoughtfully. "I guess I like to read. I basically grew up living in our family's library."

"Ah, Cloud's a bookworm! How unexpected!" The Italian frowned.

"How is that unexpected?" She asked, almost offended, at yet Haru ignored her and moved on with more questions.

"What do you read about?"

"Mostly medical stuff, but I've been getting into books about mediation and martial arts lately," Cloud replied, shrugging.

"Ah! I forgot you knew martial arts!" Haru chirped, almost jumping up to Cloud. "Why don't you spice this interview up and show us a few moves?"

"I don't think that's a good idea," Cloud warned placidly.

"I think it's a great idea," Reborn disagreed. "Haru was right about this interview getting boring. You should show Haru a pressure point." Cloud looked at Reborn, then sighed, knowing that if the hitman wanted her to do it, she had no choice. She motioned for Haru to hold out her hand.

"What?!" Haru leaned back, "I-I didn't think that you'd do it on me."

"You're the one who wanted to see it," Reborn reminded her, all too happily.

"And it's not anyone else is here," Cloud pointed out.

"Reborn is right over there!" Haru pleaded, no longer onboard with the idea. Cloud's expression deadpanned.

"You really think I would do something like this to him. And besides, it'll only be a little discomfort," She explained, going ahead and grabbing the other girl's wrist, "You just press this point, and you'll ju-" She stopped talking as Haru squeaked and fell to the ground. Cloud blinked, staring down at her with slightly widened eyes.

"I thought she would be stronger…."

"You would think so, with how much she jumps around," Reborn commented, staring down at the fallen hostess as well. "Well, I suppose that's our show this week," he shrugged, and then looked into the camera. "Ciao, ciao!"

"…..shouldn't we do something about her?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**I swear am high of paint fumes and feels (mostly Steven Universe feels). Gah, this is such a frustrating arc for Cloud, just because of the fact that everyone is treating her like a child (which, to them, she is). Maybe that's why I like the next arc and the arc after so much because she puts that frustration to use?**

**Legit question that I've been thinking about, is Squalo/Xanxus canon? Because reading back through, I've noticed a few things and how their relationship works, plus on the wiki page their listed as partners (and I know that's just wiki, but I love that and it makes me giddy that someone did that). I think the more I think about it, the more I ship them and they may have just become one of my OTPs. If not canon, then I think it's heavily hinted. Like, Bel has a line in the anime that's something along the lines of "without Squalo around, there's no one to calm the boss down", and I don't know, I may just want it to be real. I can see Cloud picking it on it later, and totally going along with it, and Squalo getting embarrassed because she picks up on it.**

**Okay, two things:**

**A small reoccurring omake is in the works and it will be called Cloud's Cloud-Cloud interview Dangerous! where Cloud fills in for Haru and hosts the show. Anyone have any guest suggestions or interview question suggestions? I know for sure the first guest will be Bel, and then other possible guests are Squalo, Dino, Tsuna, Yamamoto, Xanxus, Dayita, Zhanna, and you guys can suggest characters too! If it gives me an idea I'll probably do it.**

**Also, I'm thinking of doing a reader-question interview thing, where you guys submit questions to ask Cloud. I'm going to go ahead and mention it now, so you guys can send in plenty of questions and I have plenty of time to gather them. It can be any question you want! Reborn would most likely host it and Cloud would answer truthfully. Questions can ranger form personal to completely silly and she would have to answer them (because Reborn would kill her otherwise).**

**So, when I found that quote in my stash, I began evilly cackling and my friend looked over at me and said "They're going to hate you, aren't they?" Apparently, according to her, it's an 'experience' watching me write, because I occasionally evilly laugh and make funny faces. Anyways, that quote sums up this chapter almost too accurately, and I think that's a beautiful thing. Whoo, Angst! But serious;y, this chapter made me sad writing is, especially Dino and Cloud stuff, and her dad stuff, because there's a fuck ton of unresolved emotions and conflict with that subject that's never really been confronted before.**

**Well, all of you are going to hate me. Here's another cliffhanger and see you whenever the hell I am able to update again!**

**Review**** Responses:**

**N1ghtdr343r:** Aw, I'm glad you liked it so much! I'm feeling so giddy now! I'm also very proud that I am causing you to have so many feels. Yay! Sadness! And I really think I would spntanously combust if someone turned this into a fanfic manga. Like, I would die of happiness, right then and there. Thanks for the review and the love!

**Eruruu4:** Agreed; Fran is fucking adorbs. His reaction would probably be really blank like "sure." Or something really anticlimactic like that. Then again, you can never really know with him…. Thanks for the review!

**PolkaPox:** I feed off of your misery, dear reader. And you know what? This is kind of a cliff hanger too, and the previous cliffhanger never really got resolved because they still have problems. Yay! Cliffhangers! Here's an update and thanks for the review!

**KrazyxLove:** Four for you Glen Coco, you go Glen Coco. Hit the nail on the head and it's freaking me out a bit? I guess it makes sense though (although I never really did try to hide it) and pandas are awesome, so why shouldn't she have an awesome box weapon that is both awesome and adorbs. Koalas would be adorable and a great choice as well. Thanks for the review!

**Turtlehoffmann2251:** The tears shall continue until the author says otherwise. And the author says never. The tears shall flow for eternity. Thanks for the tears and review!

**Yuka Tsukino:** Yo! I'm not going to focus on pairing Cloud up because she's got shit to get done and doesn't have time for love right now. However, there will be an omake coming up that has to do with this topic soon. Here's an update and thanks for the review!

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** Yeah, email would be chill. Do whatever your little artist heart desires~ Thanks for the review!

**XxSaphirezxX:** I HIGHLY ADVIZE YOU TO WATCH KORRA. KORRA IS BAE, KORRA IS LIFE. Ahem. Thanks for the review!

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** Thanks for answering the question and it's great you have someone like that in your life, and it's great that you have KHR and Tsuna to relate to. These shows are so important. Thanks for sharing and for the review!

**Ilovshibari:** Aw, thanks so much! I feel so honored when you guys say stuff like that! Thanks for the love and review!

**Theta-McBride:** And I take that hatred and love with open arms, dear reader. Yeah, sorry I haven't updated in a while, but here's an update now! Harry Potter is my childhood, dude. Thanks for answering the questions and for the review!

**Hongo En:** THANKS SO MUCH FOR THINKING IT'S AWESOME AND THANKS FOR THE REVIEW! HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER!

**Prince-ZuChiRu:** It's the hatred of readers like you that inspire me to end with more cliffhangers. Thanks for the review!

**VanillaMilkshake18**: Yeeeeaaaah, I kind of figured, but responded anyone for the off chance that it wasn't you, plus I was hella tired. I will take the name Lal proudly, for she is a boss ass bitch. I only hope I can live up to her name. And nah, Yita's hella pan. Thanks for the review!

**Ddmahan922:** The tears of my readers make a lovely morning coffee. And that would be an awesome party, with those three sexy beasts around. And agreed; Bel's hair is fabulous along with everything else that is Prince the Ripper. Thanks for the review!

**Thao Same:** Ah, I see you enjoyed the cliff hanger, so I made another, just for you. You're welcome, babe. Thanks for the review and tears!

**WinterStormArt:** Naruto was my first anime as well and I felt really connected to Sakura; I often felt weak and the episode 'Sakura Blossoms' (maybe?) meant so much to me. And I also grew up reading Percy Jackson too and it also means a lot to me. Oh, sweet, dear childhood. Thanks for sharing and for the review!

**Uniquemangalover:** Cloud might not be able to handle this arc either. Ahem. DBZ WAS PART OF MY CHILDHOOD AS WELL. ALL THESE ANSWERS ARE MANKING ME EMOTIONAL BECAUSE ALL YOUR GUYS' ANSWERS ARE SOMETHING THAT I'VE WATCHED AND LOVED. FUCK. THANKS FOR THE REVIEW!

**RaNDoem:** Nah, their deal was when Cloud's 28, and she was only 25 when she died, so no wedding bells yet. Ahhhhh, all these answers are part of my childhood. One Piece is soooooo important! And Korrasami is my ultimate OTP, with only Cecilos coming as a close second. Thanks for the review!

**Guests:**

**Hannah (Chapter 8):** I sometimes wish I could have a more common name so I could do the same. Every time my name or something even remotely close to me or my name is mentioned I'm like "me! That's me! I am that person!" and I get all excited. Thanks for the review!

**Sky Lime (Chapter 33):** Thanks for thinking it's awesome and for reviewing! Here's your update!

**Yuki (chapter 33):** Thanks! I really wanted to make the right choice with the name, since he's kind of a big deal. Thanks for the review!

**Catrina (Chapter 33):** Thanks! Here's another update and thanks for the review!

**Question:**

Okay, so apparently since you guys want me to relive my childhood with your answers, I'm going with a Harry Potter Question, so my fellow HP gen, back me up on this one (and if you guys don't read Harry Potter, happily ignore this and go about with your lives).

**What is your Hogwarts House?**

_I'm a Slytherin, but, my dear friends like to refer to me as a Slytherclaw? I was caught between Ravenclaw and Slytherin for a while, and the pottermore test was the tiebreaker. Therefore, I am a Slytherin. Hiss hiss motherfuckers. _

**-Klu**


	35. Definitions of Forgiveness

Chapter 35: Definitions of Forgiveness

* * *

><p><strong>"Dead people receive more flowers than the living ones because regret is stronger than gratitude."<strong>

**-Anne Frank's Diary**

* * *

><p>"What are you guys doing?" Prince the Ripper questioned the two lackeys that were peeking inside the training room. They jumped at the voice, and spun around, his presence startling him. They bowed slightly and looked at each other, trying to decide which one would talk. The right underling sighed and stepped forward.<p>

"Bel-sama, forgive us, but… there's a girl in there."

"Hm? A girl?" the prince titled his head in slight confusion, and stepped past them to look in the room himself.

"Yes sir. She's… she's sleeping, along with two animals. We think they're box weapons."

"I see…" his eyes narrowed and he frowned, recognizing both the girl and the animals. "Scram," he told the two men, with a wave of his hand. They complied quickly, not having to be told twice, well aware that there would be knives in their backs if they didn't. As he entered, the red panda, once curled up at the girl's side, lifted its head, its ears perking up as the prince neared.

"Haven't seen you in a while…" the prince muttered as Kashi happily padded over the greet him. He smirked as he scratched under the animal's chin, knowing very well that it was her favorite spot. She practically purred at the contact. Bel looked back over at Jian, who simply gazed at the prince lazily, but made no move to greet him so he didn't disturb the girl sleeping peacefully against the panda's fur.

"What an idiot," Bel muttered softly, walking over to Cloud with Kashi right on his heels. He picked up the notebook near the girl and flip it over, scanning over its contents. "Fell asleep while training, huh?" He glanced around the training room, noting the indents and holes in the wall, fully aware that they were made from her ultimate defense. After all, he was one of the few that had seen it, and knew it well. He had trained with her many times, using his own weapons against the formidable box. It was a shame, the prince thought, that she never really used it. He glanced back at the sleeping girl, clearly worn out from training. But perhaps, the prince rehashed, it wasn't for his Cloud to use.

"Maybe they were for you," He muttered thoughtfully, hand on chin as he stared at the girl. "She prepared all this for you," he realized, looking back at the notebook, almost smirking at the very badly drawn pictures of Jian and Kashi, with diagrams only she herself could possibly understand. He sat down himself, and leaned against the wall, continuing to flip through the book, growing comfortable in the silence with only the soft sounds of drowsy breathing. After a while, Belphegor glanced back at the girl's sleeping features and titled his head, for the first time, not seeing the ghost he had been attempting to avoid. He allowed a soft grin to grace his features, and let out a light snicker.

"Maybe this will work, little princess," He muttered to himself, scratching underneath Kashi's chin once more as she made herself comfortable between the prince and Cloud. "Maybe this will work after all."

* * *

><p>"You're alive?" Mukuro raised an eyebrow.<p>

"You sound surprised," he said, almost offended. "Do you truly think I'd allow myself to be killed, little Chiavarone?" I let out a relieved laugh, feeling the void I had for so long being filled with one look at him, establishing our connection quickly.

"No," I agreed, smiling, "You're too stubborn for that." He scoffed. My eyes narrowed as his form softened, some parts beginning to fade in mist before he managed to pull himself together again. "Are you okay?"

"That's adorable," he smirked, "you're concerned about my well-being."

"Well it is kind of my fault that you got injured so badly," I admitted, crossing my arms.

"You and I both know that I was going to fight that man one way or another," Mukuro reminded me, "I was merely hitting two birds with one stone."

"But," I repeated firmly, frowning as his shape wavered again, "are you okay?"

"I'm simply weakened; a temporary state," he reaffirmed me.

"You should feel honored that he's even here right now," Fran inputted, reminding me of his presence, "with how pathetic he is now, you must be really important for him to visit-" He stopped as Mukuro appeared beside him and stabbed him violently in the head with his trident.

"One so little," the older illusionist sneered coldly, "should not be spouting such useless nonsense. However," He added, walking over to, "I did want to check up on you; transitioning to the future can be…. difficult, after all. Especially with the death of your future self." I frowned, and looked away, almost pouting.

"Don't tell me you're going to treat me weird too," I sighed. He chuckled at my reaction.

"Of course not, little Chiavarone," he chuckled and reached down to ruffle my hair. I huffed and leaned away, attempting to swat his hand. "Your future self and you are two completely different people; you should know this best, out of anyone," he sent a side look to Hannah, who glanced away angrily. "Not the same person at all. You are your own person," he leaned down to look me in the eyes, "remember that. However, you still need protection from Byakuran, so I will advise you to be careful in this unfamiliar future. The last thing we want is for your future self's death to be in vain."

"Nee-san's always prepared," Fran commented.

"Naturally," Mukuro retorted. "Although her goal was to not get you involved and into the future, she still set up precautions where you'd be safe and able to be protected in case is did happen."

"Like the notebook?" I questioned, ignoring the spike in irritation when he said I need to be 'protected'. He nodded.

"That was for your own knowledge, so you'd at least know how to defend yourself. Although we'd like to think that this scenario wouldn't happen, it did. And that's inevitable," He shrugged, then frowned again as his form wavered once more. "It appears that my time is about up," he muttered, then turned to Fran. "Keep her safe." I frowned, irritated, as if he didn't think I was capable of taking care of myself.

"You're leaving?" I asked, as he began fading away completely.

"Kufufu… no need to worry, little Chiavarone," he cooed, his smile almost completely gone at this point. "I'll be sure to visit again." I huffed, as he disappeared entirely, then turned to Hannah, still miffed. "And what's wrong with you?" She opened her mouth to reply, but Fran beat her too it.

"Ah, she just got chewed out by master," he hummed, looking nonchalantly around the garden.

"Don't tell her that!" Hannah snapped at him, her face heating up.

"What do you mean got chewed out?" I questioned Fran, eyes narrowed. He opened his mouth to respond, but promptly closed it at Hannah's look. I raised an eyebrow, looking in between the two, then sighed.

"Whatever," I said with a dismissive wave, "I'll find out whatever is it you're trying to hide from me eventually, Hannah." I gave her a pointed look. "You know I will."

"Nee-chan," Fran drawled, looking at our surroundings, noticing the flowers and plants slightly shivering. "You're still angry."

"Why do I need to defend myself?" I questioned, arms crossed and fists clenched. "Defend myself? Why can't I fight for myself? Why just defend? And he asks you to protect me?" Fran blinked then turned to Hannah.

"Should I be offended?" He asked her. She shrugged.

"Sure, he doesn't treat me like I'm dead," I continued, on a roll at this point, "but he's still treating me like a kid!"

"But you _are_ a kid," Hannah pointed out, her expression softening, throwing me off a bit, "at least, in this timeline you are to him. And the others to."

"I can fend for myself," I shot back, still irked, although seeing her point. "I'm not just a little girl anymore. I've trained," I muttered, raising a hand to look at it, "I've grown stronger…." My hand clenched into a fist. "I can protect them now, but I can't do that it they don't let me fight."

"It's too risky," Fran said. "You heard master, you have to be protected. We can't let you fight now."

"So you just want me to sit around letting people get hurt for me? Play damsel in distress?" I shot back, looking at him with angry eyes. He met me with a cool stare. "Then why am I learning how to use my box weapons?"

"A precaution," he replied simply. "And, they _are_ yours now. It's not like anyone else can use them." I sighed, his mellow attitude nullifying my anger. I puffed my cheeks and narrowed my eyes at him.

"Why aren't you treating me like a kid?" I wondered out loud. "You're about the only one." He blinked, not expecting the question.

"Hm?" He scratched his chin. "I dunno. I guess it's cause Nee-san was older than me? And now, you're just a few years younger. I never really saw you as a kid like the others, I guess." I sighed and sat down again, eventually laying down to look up at the leafy canopy. I heard Hannah sigh as well, and move to sit beside me.

"I'm sorry for earlier," she said softly. I raised and eyebrow and glanced at her.

"Earlier? What did you d-"

"For what I said," she cut me off, looking away as she brought her knees up to hug them, "about Dino. I was just edging you on, not helping at all. I haven't been much help at all, lately." My stomach dropped, being reminded of the conversation with my brother.

"He didn't deserve it," I whispered, the air turning cold around us. "I shouldn't have said that. He didn't deserve it." I turned on my side, away from Hannah. Fran looked up and held out a hand as soft snow drifted down.

"Are you going to apologize?" Hannah asked. I bit my bottom lip and hesitated to answer truthfully.

"I don't know if I can."

* * *

><p>"You awake?" I drowsily blinked, taking in my surroundings all at once, having to remind myself where I was. Jian shifted from under me as I pushed myself up.<p>

"Bel?" I muttered, rubbing one eye. No, I corrected myself. This wasn't my Bel.

"How far have you gotten with training?" I blinked, the question throwing me. Seeing my confusion, he elaborated. "Have you been able to absorb flames or tranquilize your opponents with Jian?"

"You know about that?" I questioned him.

"Naturally," He said with a small smirk, clearing replaying fond memories. "I helped her train with them, after all."

"Ah," I muttered, not really knowing how else to respond. "Well, I haven't really had any opponents to test it on," I admitted, rubbing the back of my head. He shrugged nonchalantly, making a decision.

"I'll train with you," he stated. I blinked at him, then narrowed my eyes.

"Why?" He snickered.

"It's the prince's duty to help the little princess," he explained with a flick of his hand. "And besides, she left this for you, didn't she? The least I can do is help out." My stomach dropped, realizing that he was only doing this for her sake, not for mine.

"Thanks," I said softly.

"We have to get you prepared anyways," he continued, either not noticing or ignoring my change in mood, "since the attack in in four days. We can't have the little princess getting hurt, now can we?" My eye twitched, getting the same feeling from Bel as I was from Mukuro.

"Okay," I said, coming to a resolve. "Teach me how to fight with these," I told him, giving him a determined look. "I need to know how to hold my own with these box weapons." His expression remained blank, as if startled by my determination. Then, it morphed into a grin.

"Haven't seen that look in a long time," he snickered, his mood now ecstatic. "It's nice though," He said, pushing himself up so he was now standing over me, "reminds me of happier times." I accepted his hand and he pulled me up. "Almost wish that the bronco was here to see it," he commented offhandedly, pulling out his own box weapon. My stomach dropped, not liking the conclusion I came to.

"He left?" I said, a cold, regretful feeling filling me. Bel looked at me, confused.

"Not yet," he replied, shrugging. "He was making his way out about the time I stumbled on y-" I was out the door before he finished his sentence, not wanting – no needing to find Dino.

He wasn't leaving without a goodbye, I told myself. Not again.

* * *

><p>"Dino!" He turned to me with a shocked face that morphed into hurt once more as he met my eyes. Romario, standing in the open door, leading to one of the many metallic walled hallways, stared between us sadly. "Before you leave, Dino," I breathed out, reaching out to him, my features mirroring his pained look. "We can't just leave things like this, ple-"<p>

"No, C-cloud," he choked on my name. "It's fine. It's fine, there is nothing more you can say. It will be better, less painful," he corrected himself, "if we leave it like this. I'm sorry that I hurt you," he said sincerely, "but you and I both know that I can't do it. I can barely look at you," he admitted, looking away, almost angry. "We both know that. So, it's better this way," he concluded, turning to leave. My fist clenched and I pushed myself forward once more, not letting him go, not like this.

"It's okay," I told him before he fully turned. "It's okay if you don't want to look at me because I remind you of her. It's okay if you can never look at me the same again or if you don't even want to see me." I couldn't see his expression, a shadow covering it. "I'm sorry," I choked out. "I'm sorry for what I said, and I'm sorry for what she did." His head shot up, and he looked at me with a pained expression.

"No, no, Cloud," he muttered, reaching out to me and moving forward. "That wasn't you, that wasn't your fault." Now standing in front of me as I looked down, he gently caressed my face. "You and her... you and your future self, my sister... you're not the same person," he said sadly, wiping away the single tear that rolled down my cheek. "You don't have to apologize for anything she did," he whispered, and kissed me on the forehead. "That wasn't you."

"I'm sorry..." I repeated, bringing my own hand up to hold his, pressing it to my cheek. "I'm sorry for everything," I sobbed again, both of us aware that this apology wasn't for him, but for the Dino of my timeline. After all, this wasn't my Dino. He didn't need this apology. He sighed; a heavy, guilty sound.

"I forgive you, Cloud," he replied softly, bringing my hand up to his lips and then letting it drop. Romario began walking out the door with one more look back at me, but my eyes remained on the ground as my brother turned to leave.

And I let him go.

* * *

><p>It was Fran who found me later, my head buried in my knees, crying softly. At first, he simply stared at me, leaning around the corner, not knowing what to do. I sniffed, and looked up at him irritated.<p>

"What do you want?" I snapped at him, roughly wiping my eyes. "Why the fuck are you just standing there?"

"Well, frankly, nee-chan," he started, fully walking around the corner now that I acknowledged him, "I don't know how to react to this." He made a general gesture towards my person. I sighed and looked at the wall in front of me.

"That makes two of us," I muttered. I listened as Fran came to sit down beside me, leaning against the wall and hugging his knees as well. "I don't usually cry," I told him.

"I know," he replied, then after a moment. "Is it because of your brother?" I hesitated before I nodded, not familiar with him knowing me so well. "It's fine, nee-chan," he chanted, noticing my hesitation. "You can talk about it with me. We're like this," he held up two crossed fingers, "remember?" I gazed at him, then sighed again.

"He's not my Dino," I started slowly, deciding that, yes, I needed to get this off my chest, "but talking to him, lashing out at him, at everyone…" I bit my bottom lip, regret filling me again. "It made me realize how awful I've been treating Dino...my Dino, my brother who doesn't look at me like I'm dead…but, seeing how much pain I cause him with just being here, and seeing how everyone else looks at me, and the pain that I caused them... with my situation and the fact that I'm not supposed to even be here," I said, more tears leaking out as I hugged myself tighter. "Hannah hates me for taking her life, Mukuro got hurt because of me, my brother doesn't even want to look at me, and Bel's only helping me because he think it's my future self's dying wish or some shit like that…" I let out a sob, looking away from Fran. "Maybe I just shouldn't be here at all, you know? It's not like I'm doing any good." There was a beat of silence, then Fran sucked in his breath.

"That was heavy," he commented.

"Yeah," I agreed, still blinking away tears.

"And it kind of sucks," he added, "that you think that. You've done a lot more than you think you have," he told me, staring at the wall in front of us as well. "You just haven't seen it."

"How do you know?" I questioned him hollowly. He shrugged.

"I just do. You'll see, Nee-chan," he reassured me. "You're a lot cooler than you think. And besides," he drawled, "even if you haven't done anything useful, why should that matter? Whether it's your first, second or sixth, it's your life. Why should you have to do something important with it? Just live it," he concluded, then blinked. "I feel like that's something you would say." I sniffed, wiping away my tears again, actually feeling better after talking to him. I sighed and leaned on his shoulder, closing my eyes.

"Thanks," I muttered softly, simply enjoying his presence at this point. "I needed that."

"Did my awesome pep-talk cheer you up?" He said, glancing down at me.

"A little," I admitted, "but you're kind of ruining it," I informed him coyly, cracking one eye to look at him.

"Oh…" He nodded, understanding, then after a moment, added, "do you need a hug?"

"…. You suck at comforting people, Fran," I told him, sighing in defeat then letting out a small laugh.

"What are you talking about, nee-chan?" He retorted. "I got you to smile, didn't I?"

* * *

><p>I easily dove out of the way as Mink lunged toward me, streaking red flames on the wall as he did so. Pressing both my cloud and sun rings into Kashi's box, I multiplied her form, sending the red pandas to corner Mink with bamboo shoots. Seeing that they left him with only one escape route, I quickly brought Jian out, careful with the amount of flames I fed him, already having used enough with multiplying Kashi. As soon as Jian formed, he hit the ground with his paws, trapping Mink with bamboo. The weasel squeaked in protest, unable to escape in time and was eventually trapped in a box, which a now considerably smaller Jian grabbed, his paws radiating with rain flames, subduing the other box weapon and growing in size as the panda absorbed its flames.<p>

"You've gotten the hang of it pretty well," Bel chided from the side lines, leaning against the wall with his open box weapon.

"Jian," I called, catching the panda's attention. I motioned for him to let Mink go, which he happily complied with. As Jian absorbed the flames, the storm mink flung itself out of the box and shook itself. It glanced around the room, and spotted Kashi, whose doppelgangers I had already absorbed back into the box, sitting and grooming her own fur. Sporting a wicked grin, mirroring it's owner perfectly, Mink tackled Kashi, earning a squawk from the red panda. I snorted, walking past their play fight as Kashi pinned Mink to the ground, playfully biting his neck, and approached Bel.

"You're going easy on me," I accused him blankly.

"And what makes you say that, little princess?" He asked, a ghost of a grin on his face.

"You're just sending Mink in," I replied, pointing an accusing finger at him. "You're not stepping in at all." He frowned.

"That's because you just need to know how to defend yourself," he explained casually. "There's no need for you to fight, especially with us around to protect you." My fists clenched again, once again reminded of how they saw me.

"I'm not a child, Bel," I reminded him heatedly. He scoffed.

"Nobody was saying you were."

"Well, everyone sure is treating me like one," I retorted, crossing my arms and turning away from him. Bel opened his mouth to speak again, but Squalo walked in before he could get any words out.

"Bel, we n- what the hell happened in here?" He said, taking in the damage of the room.

"The little princess was getting used to using her box weapon," Bel explained. Squalo's eyes narrowed and he glanced at me.

"For defense, right?" I groaned loudly, clutching my head.

"Not you too, Squalo!" I whined. Squalo raised an eyebrow and gave Bel a look.

"The fuck is up with her?" He asked. Bel sighed.

"She wants to fight-"

"Like hell we're letting you fight, brat!" Squalo turned to me, angry even before Bel could finish his explanation. "We already decided; it's way too fucking risky to have you fighting, so you're going to sit your ass down and stay near us where we can protect you!"

"You already decided?" I repeated. "What?" I asked, reflecting his mood, "did you guys sit down and talk about this or something?" I blinked, noting their reactions to my words. "_Wǒ cào_, you guys did talk about this! DId you guys also collectively decide to distract me with ;helping' me with training, but only showing me how to defend?" By the click of Bel's tongue, and Squalo huffing and turning his head, I could easily see that I was right. I seethed, turning away from both of them, getting angrier by the second. "And here I thought that maybe you'd be one of the only ones to have a little faith in me," I shot at Squalo. He reared back, as if he were offended.

"This isn't about having faith in you brat," Squalo sneered, grabbing my arm and turning me towards him. "For some reason Byakuran wants you, and like fuck we're going to let him get anywhere near you. This is about your strength; it's about your protection," he concluded. I huffed, puffing my cheeks out as we stared each other down.

"You really expect me to sit around and let other people get hurt for me?" I said, a flat repeat of my conversation with Mukuro, reminding me that my point was not getting through their heads.

"This is war," Squalo coldly reminded me, "not the time for you to be playing hero."

"I'm not playing hero," I shot back hotly, "I'm standing for myself; I'm fighting my own battles and dealing with my own consequences." Squalo scoffed.

"Listen up, brat," He said, roughly throwing his arm around me, beginning to cart me out of the training room. "You're one of us, right? The Vongola is one, especially during times of crisis. These aren't just your consequences and it's not just your problem," he explained roughly, while basically dragging me out. I gave him a sour look, as I pushed back, and went under his arm, only for him to grab my shirt collar and lift me up to where he was looking me in the eyes once more. Bel snickered behind us, finding the situation amusing at this point. Our argument had somehow morphed into a sibling squabble, it seemed. "Voi, brat!" I gave him an unimpressed look.

"…what?"

"What's the most important thing to you?" My expression softened, the answer coming almost immediately.

"Family," I muttered, seeing where he was going.

"And what does family do for each other?" I puckered my lips, thinking of many answers to his question. "They fucking fight for each other!" Squalo shouted, getting annoyed when I didn't respond immediately. "So," he said, pulling me closer to his face. "Let your fucking family fight for you." I looked away sourly, then glanced back between him and Bel.

"….fine." Squalo 'hmphed' in triumph and Bel snickered.

"Ushishi, so no more of this wanting to fight shit, right little princess?" Bel asked in a teasing manner. I huffed, crossing my arms.

"No promises." Bel shrugged, then walked past us.

"That's about as close to a promise as we're going to get, Captain," he informed Squalo.

"Can you put me down now?" I asked Squalo pathetically, still being held up in the air. "This is kind of uncomfortable, and I want to get back to messing with my box-" I shut my mouth, the look on his face clearly telling me that was the wrong thing to say. With one graceful movement, he slung me over his shoulder and began walking forward, following Bel's tracks.

"Where are we going?" I asked sadly, knowing I wasn't getting away from this (I could easily slip out of his grasp of course, but I really didn't feel like having another yelling match I know I'd lose).

"To dinner," he answer curtly. "Have you even eaten anything all day, brat?"

"Ipin came by to give us lunch earlier," I replied.

"Did you have breakfast?"

"… I forgot." I could practically feel his anger rising.

"You better eat your fucking fill at dinner," he seethed. I sighed, finding this Squalo to be more irritated than the one from my timeline. But for some reason, I didn't mind it at all. _It's because he missed me,_ I realized. I blinked, it hitting me all at once. He's pissed because he missed me, and now wants to protect me. This realization caused a warm feeling to spread through me.

"Since when have family dinners become so important for you?" I asked quietly to test my theory.

"Since my family start dying," he replied with robust. I sighed sadly.

"If I say sorry, will you get mad?" I asked him quietly.

"The fuck do you think, brat?" I sighed, a soft smile gracing my features.

"Thanks, Squalo," I said genuinely. He paused then, put my down from off my shoulder, turning to face me with a confused look.

"For what?"

"For being one of the few who genuinely miss me," I said softly, truthfully. He blinked, and an awkward look passed over his face, not knowing how to react.

"W-whatever, brat," he snarled, whipping around and walking forward again. "You better not try to sneak off to training again since I let you down," he warned me, not bothering to look back. "I'll personally skewer you if you do." I smiled, and let out a small laugh, quickly moving to catch up with him. I hummed happily walking by his side, and retorted.

"We both know that's an empty threat, Squalo."

* * *

><p>Somehow, I managed to be seated by Xanxus at dinner. The boss of the Varia himself did not seem to mind, and actually surprised me by greeting me with a slight nod of his head before completely devouring the meat in front of him (which, coming from Xanxus, that was a feat in itself. Usually, one was lucky enough to be ignored by him). However, being on Xanxus's left put me in the position sitting across from Levi on Xanxus's right. This led to the man glaring at me across the table, partly out of shock, and partly out of anger.<p>

"Why…" he muttered. I blinked across at him, fork innocently in my mouth, having been ignoring him after realizing he was simple going to stare at me for a large portion of the meal.

"Hm?" Squalo looked over from the animated conversation he was having with Bel and Fran (and by _animated_, I meant on the verge of a full blown fight with Lussaria happily trying to quell their argument). "Why the fuck are you staring at her?" He addressed Levi.

"Why is a younger Cloud here?" We blinked at him.

"You mean," I started, slowly, "nobody told you I was here?" Squalo frowned, and his head snapped towards the teal-haired illusionist.

"Voi! Fran!"

"Hm?" Fran moved his head slightly to dodge a knife. "Yes, Captain?"

"I thought I told you to tell him that the brat was here?"

"Ah. When you said tell anyone important," Fran began explain himself, "I assumed you didn't mean Levi."

"Naturally," Bel stated, snickering and flashing more knives. I glanced back at Levi, whose eye was twitching in anger, actually feeling sorry for him. My eyes lingered back to Fran at the sounds of clanging, and I looked over to see his plate lifted in front of him, as a makeshift shield against Bel's knife. Unfortunately, the remainders of the illutionist's meal was now messily discarded on the table, a sacrifice Fran needed to make in order to protect himself.

"Is that why you sat me over here?" I asked Squalo, looking up at him beside me.

"If you weren't near the boss, you'd lose your food in seconds thanks to those two bastards," Squalo explained, carefully watching their fight in the corner of his eye. "Sitting in between the shitty boss and me is the safest place to eat."

"You're telling me that my food is safe next to him?" I asked, gesturing with my head at Xanxus, who was now on his fourth (?) plate. Xanxus snorted, having heard my comment.

"Even I'm not low enough to take food away from a scrawny animal like you," he sneered, giving me a look that I distinguished as amused. My eye twitched.

"What's up with everyone calling me scrawny lately?" I muttered irritably, returning to my plate once more, stabbing at my sides. "First Zhanna and now you," I whined, almost miserable. "I'm not that little." Xanxus snorted at my complaints.

"Please," he breathed out, his plate cleared once again and now taking a sip of his wine. "You're as small and tiny as they come." I sighed in defeat, not knowing whether to be astonished by his words or offended.

Xanxus, for one, was certainly amused.

* * *

><p>"Cloud-chan!" Dayita cooed, hugging me from behind. I sighed, and allowed her to, knowing that she'd act hurt if I didn't. Bel scowled, motioning for Mink to halt his assault. I motioned for Kashi and Jian to do the same, the two smaller animals immediately starting another mock fight, while Jian plopped down, looking like he didn't know what else to do.<p>

"What are you doing, Yita?" I asked her, easily making her release me form her grip with a few well-placed pinches. She pouted as I stepped away and turned to face her.

"Bored~" She sang out throwing her arms up and crossing them behind her head.

"And?" I prompted, noticing Bel's sour mood and expression out of the corner of my eye, and noting his uncharacteristic silence.

"And I decided to watch my two favorite people train," She conclude, sending a wink at both me and Bel. I tilted my head, smiling slightly, but still confused.

"Your two favorite people?" I questioned. She hummed in agreement, her eyes lighting up.

"You're not invited," Bel stated coldly, coming to stand beside me, almost protectively.

"You of all people know best, _Belphegor_," she cooed, leaning forward and clasping her arms together, pushing her chest forward in a seductive manner, "I don't need an invitation to go where I want." I raised an eyebrow, looking between the two.

"I'm guessing that you two don't like each other?" I tried, deciding whether I should step back or not, noticing I was easily in Bel's line of fire.

"That's not it at all, Cloud-chan," Dayita gasped, mocking offense. "I simple _adore_ the prince. I'm afraid that he's just jealous of me." Bel scoffed at the notion.

"As if a prince could be jealous of a snake like you," he sneered, a dangerous grin on his face and a knife already in his hand. I took a wise step back as Dayita sighed dramatically, putting a hand on her cheek.

"How could someone so attractive, have such a vulgar personality?" Yita sighed, looking Bel over and shaking her head sadly.

"I could say the same for you," Bel shot back, twirling the knife in his hand with vigor. Dayita smiled coyly batting her eyelashes at him in a lustful style.

"So you admit that I'm attractive?" She teased. He made a small 'kaching' sound and threw the knife, but much to my surprise, he missed his target by about a foot, hitting the wall behind her instead. He scowled, as Dayita giggled, casually making her way until she was behind me, holding my shoulders. Bel however, didn't seem to notice this until I reacted to her touch, turning around and giving her a pleading, tired look.

"Please don't use me as a shield," I sighed. "Don't drag me into this." Bel grinned, and Dayita pouted.

"Cloud-chan," she whined, "I just hate that you can't see illusions! You end up giving me away."

"I think it's a great gift," Bel commented, already armed with another knife and once again twirling it in his fingers. I held up my arms, after realizing that Dayita was not moving from behind me.

"Here's an idea," I put out before Bel had a chance to throw his knife, only guessing that Dayita was still behind me thanks to her illusions. "Let's not try to kill each other? Please?" I said in a more serious tone. "Can't you guys try to get along?" Bel's grin faltered and I wondered if I said something wrong. I turned my head slighting to see that Dayita had lost her playful look as well. She sighed and released my shoulders, giving me a curious look.

"It's strange," she commented idly, almost dreamily. "It's almost as if I forget that you're the same person, and yet, I also have to remember that she's gone." I shuffled awkwardly, realizing I must have said something my future self said. Bel sighed and turned away.

"Sorry," I apologized softly, not wanting to go back to the awkward phase I had believed, hoped, wished we already passed.

"Oh, honey," Yita cooed, coming towards me and gently cupping my face. She gently tilted my head down and kissed me on the forehead. "You have nothing to apologize for," she told me softly, warmly, making me want to believe her illusion she was creating with words. "You didn't know, darling," she whispered to me, gazing at me with mildly amused, sympathetic eyes.

"Ignorance is a beautiful virtue," she told me gently, "and it is our harshest sin."

* * *

><p>My eyes snapped open, and my hands immediately moved to my gun beside the gun, aiming it at the door. Narrowing my eyes, I stared at the door, trying to figure of what was making the strange scratching and mumbled growling noises on the other side. For a moment, there was a beat of silence, and for that moment, I thought whatever was on the other side had moved on. I was proven wrong as the door handle slowly turned and the door was pushed open, allowing a large feline body to slip into the room, bumping its hip against the door to close it once it was completely inside the room. I froze, the beast fixing me with a stare, mild surprise in its eyes.<p>

"…. Bester?" I questioned, not knowing anyone else in the base to have a lion box weapon. Not answering, it stared at the gun in my hand, and let out a soft growl. Getting the hint quickly, I put down my gun slowly, and held both my hands up, letting him know I was no threat. He huffed in approval, and sauntered over to me. My eyes narrowed and I resisted the urge to scoot away as the lion (liger, I corrected myself. I just couldn't see its stripes at the moment because he wasn't angry. Thank god) neared the bed. "What are yo-ufh!"

He balanced his weight on top of me and I gasped, attempting to scoot upwards so I was not completely buried by the animal. I let out a ragged breath, having managed to at least get my head and the top of my shoulders out from under Bester before he had completely settled. I let out a wheeze, finding the weight of the liger to be quite a burden. Bester, however, seemed to remain uncaring of my situation, and stared down at me his bored eyes before yawning.

"Bester…" I whispered urgently. He huffed, as if annoyed that his new pillow could talk. "Please, Bester," I said again. "You're going to kill me." He rolled his eyes, as if saying I was being over dramatic. I blinked as he yawned again, and my eyes widened as his head swayed. "Bester, no!" His head fell gently, landing directly on my neck. I resisted the urge to spit the hairs of his mane out, fearing that it would somehow offend the liger. I made a small sound, and he let out a soft, warning growl, telling me not to move.

And so I didn't move. After all, I had no plans of becoming Bester's morning snack. Not today. Not _ever_.

* * *

><p>"Hm?" Squalo paused in his exit from the boss's office, noticing an open box weapon on the corner of his desk. He picked it up, and looked at Xanxus with a raised eyebrow, which the boss met with a bored expression.<p>

"What?" Xanxus asked blankly. "You know he doesn't like to stay in there." Squalo's eye twitched.

"Box weapon's aren't pets," he reminded Xanxus, who snorted in responses.

"Try saying that about your beloved shark." Squalo's face grew angry, with the slightest bit of embarrassment.

"You can't just let your fucking box weapon wander around the base," he seethed, "especially since it has _your_ temperament!"

"He's fine," Xanxus lazily waved him off, "I know all his usual nap places. He won't bother anyone."

"His usual-" Squalo stopped himself, before he got angrier, and took a moment before he bagan speaking again. "How many fucking times have you done this?" Squalo's face fell when he saw that Xanxus had to think about the question. "What many times _a week_?" he hissed, rephrasing himself.

"Probably four," Xanxus mumbled, still considering the question. Squalo stared at his boss, almost in utter disbelief. "Maybe six," Xanxus said with a shrug. Squalo growled, and whirled around, storming out of the room. "Where the fuck are you going?" his boss questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"To find your shitty box weapon you shitty boss!" the captain yelled back. "Before he kills someone!"

"You're overreacting," Xanxus replied, not the least bit worried, and in fact, casually sipping his tequila, more focused on his drink, than the problem at hand. "He hasn't killed anyone yet."

* * *

><p>"Have you seen the little princess?" Ipin and Lussaria looked up at Bel, stopping their conversation as they stared at him in the doorway.<p>

"Not since last night," Ipin stated, recalling their conversation she and her sister had, talking about fond memories of their master.

"Same with me," Lussaria answered, getting a little worried. "Why? Is she missing?" He asked, getting more and more worried, attempting to not jump tot the worst.

"We should know if she left the base," Bel explained, crossing his arms. "But, she didn't meet for training, which is strange for her…." He trailed off, deep in in thought. He clicked his tongue and exited, deeming the two others in the room no longer useful.

"I bet that Frog knows…"

* * *

><p>Levi paused in his trek through the hallway. He blinked, then turned towards the door he just passed. He almost put it off as his imagination, but that theory was squashed when, yes, he heard another loud snore coming from the room.<p>

"Isn't this…" he stared at the door, squinting his eyes, "where that brat is staying…?" He almost hesitated opening the door, knowing, really hoping, that the loud, animalistic snoring was not the young girl's. And for once in his life, Levi was right. He stared in shock, easily recognizing his beloved boss's box weapons lazily sprawled out on the bed in the room. As the animal let out another loud snore, he noticed color standing out under the white mane of the animal.

Pleading green eyes stared at him from under a mass of both her own and the liger's hair. After getting over the urge to burst out laughing right then and there, Levi moved to step forward, deciding it wise to save the girl form getting crushed by the lion ("Since she was in boss's favor," he told himself as an excuse), and he would have helped the girl, if Bester hadn't snapped his eyes open the moment Levi stepped into the room. Levi froze as the liger's eye met his, paling at the intensity that radiated off the animal.

One rumbling growl was all it took for Levi to shut the door and begin walking away as if nothing had even happened.

"Sorry, boss," he apologized with a sigh, "she wasn't worth it. I'm not becoming Bester's chew toy… _again_."

* * *

><p>"Haven't seen her, <em>dear<em>," Dayita drawled lazily, sprawled out of the couch, fanning herself with her cards.

"Not since yesterday," Fran replied to the prince's question, frowning as Dayita laid a card down. "Hey, Yita," Fran called out blankly from his seat across the coffee table, "using illusions is cheating."

"Who says I'm using illusions?" Dayita cooed, blinking innocently over at him.

"Hunch." Dayita scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Oh please," she mulled, rolling her eyes. "With who your master is, you should be able to distinguish illusions on more than just a hunch."

"So you admit you were using illusions."

"Of course not," she scoffed, watching as the prince scoffed and exited the room with a sly smile, her eyes lighting up as he moved on with his mission. She turned back to Fran, her eyes simply ecstatic. "You should know by now, Fran," she chided, "true skill lies behind every party trick _I_ play."

* * *

><p>Squalo wore a glower on his face as he stalked the hallways, while Bel wore a slight frown, becoming slightly concerned since he had been searching half the day, and still had not come across Cloud. He eyed Squalo as the captain aimed to storm past him, only stopping when the prince questioned him.<p>

"Oi, Captain," Bel addressed him. "Have you seen the little princess? Nobody has seen her all morning." Squalo froze in his tracks, and paled, immediately jumping to the worst conclusion. He whipped around to face Bel.

"Have you checked her room yet?"

"Not yet," Bel answered, a bit confused by the slight panic in Squalo's eyes. "I was going there next."

"Shit," Squalo cursed, knowing, just _knowing_ that his shitty boss's _pet _had something to do with this. He just hoped it wasn't what he was thinking. "Fuck!" He cursed again, and began to quickly make his way to the brat's room, Bel right on his heels.

"Voi! Brat!" Squalo yelled, throwing open the door, Bel right behind him. Both of them froze as they took the scene in, easily seeing the young girl, almost completely covered by the large box weapon, who was flicking it's tale lazily, quite comfortable with its new favorite pillow. There was a moment where the two elite assassins could only stare as Cloud silently pleaded for them to do something, having become quite uncomfortable thanks to the large animal that had been laying on top of her for a majority of the morning. That moment was shattered with both said elite officers bursting out laughing, Bel even doubling over.

"Help me, dammit," Cloud muttered urgently as the two almost lost it, "before he-" She immediately shut up as the liger shifted. Bester cracked one eye open, and then let loose a loud growl, causing both the men to stop laughing. Lifting it's head, the liger's lip lifted, revealing a row of teeth that almost put Bel's knives to shame. Cloud let out a sigh of relief as the liger stood up, but that relief soon turned to extreme worry as marks began to appear on the animal. Gently scooting back against the wall, careful not to touch the animal, she watched as it stared Bel and Squalo down, who had smartly began backing towards the door once more, with their weapons readily at hand. The two grinned nervously and a single bead of sweat slid down Bel's face.

"…shit."

* * *

><p>"Hm?" Xanxus's eyebrows knit together, remembering something that could possibly be deemed as important. "That's right..." he muttered, staring the ceiling as he leaned back in his throne, an empty whiskey bottle in hand. "Bester's favorite napping spot is the brat's room…" he thought for a moment, trying to decide if that was a problem or not. He huffed, and pushed himself up, moving onto his own problem that actually mattered to him; the lack of alcohol in his office.<p>

"I'll let the shitty shark deal with it," he decided as he exited.

* * *

><p>"If I say that you two deserved it for laughing at me," I said as I finished healing the scratch on Squalo's cheek, ready to move onto the various other scratches covering his arm, "Will you get mad?" Squalo sent me a glare, answering my question. Bel clicked his tongue from his seat, showing his annoyance with the whole situation as well. Then again, I reminded myself, I could imagine their pride being wounded by the fact that I saw them being chased out of the room by Bester and then promptly tackled to the ground by said box weapon only a few feet away from my door. Unfortunately, Squalo had it worst out of the two of them, haven taken the full force of the liger's tackle.<p>

Bester nudged my hand, and I was yet again reminded of the liger's presence and the fact that he had grown somewhat attached to me. I sighed, but still gentle petted his mane, knowing that he would complain again if I didn't.

"What the fuck happened to you?" The three of us looked up to see Xanxus himself, leaning against the open doorway, fresh bottle of tequila in hand.

"Your fucking box weapon attacked us, you shitty boss!"

"Hm? Is that so?" Xanxus muttered, a small smirk appearing on his lips as his eyes traveled to Bester, comfortable taking up most of the couch, and his head still resting on my lap. Xanxus took a large swig of his bottle and nodded towards his box weapon.

"Good cat."

* * *

><p>I pursed my lips, and Squalo narrowed his eyes. I opened my mouth to retort, but he cut me off.<p>

"Not one word," he demanded. "You're helping Lussaria heal during the attack and that is _final_." I opened my mouth to say, 'I'm not a healer', and then I realized that, yes, I am very much so a healer. Scrunching my nose, finding that argument void, I moved onto my next point as the other members of the Varia watched in vague amusement.

"Then what did I train for with my boxes?" I asked him defiantly.

"I thought we agreed that you wouldn't argue this, brat," Squalo recapped.

"She said no promise," Bel reminded him, a grin slipping on his face as Squalo turned on him.

"Stay the fuck out of this!" he snapped, then turned back to me.

"Well? Why did I spend all that time learning how to use them?" I asked again, an eyebrow raised.

"For defense," Squalo said, "just in case one of us isn't there for you, which _will not_ happen," he reaffirmed.

"And for distracting me?" I asked, eyes narrowed.

"And for distracting you," Bel affirmed. Squalo gave him another irritated look, causing Bel to shrug. "She figured it out the first training session."

"Nee-chan's smart," Fran commented, resting his head on his own arms, crossed on the table of the conference room where Squalo had just finished discussing the plan of attack for tomorrow's attack on the Millefiore.

"At least you get to go to the battle, Cloud," Ipin sighed from her seat between Lussaria and Levi. "I have to stay here in case someone contacts the base."

"If I can't fight, then at least let me stay here," I tried, knowing I was running into dead ends.

"And what if the base gets attacked while we're gone?" Squalo questioned. "There's no one strong enough here to protect you, so our best bet is to keep you close to us, where we know _you'll be safe_," he explained again, putting emphasis on the last three words.

"You'll be fine, darling," Lussuria called from across the table. "I'd love the help! Your healing ability are perfect for an on-field medic, after all." I sighed, softening up a bit, being reminded that I'll still be helping people.

"And you'll be near the boss," Squalo reminded me, "which is the safest place for you to be. Whatever you do, _do not_ leave his side. Remember that, you little shit." I huffed, crossing my arms and defiantly looking away from him. Squalo's eye twitched, but he was very much familiar with my rebellious nature at this point.

"Well, brat?" He asked again. "You going to follow orders?" My eyes turned to meet his our intentions clearing clashing.

"No promises."

* * *

><p><strong>Omake: Lussaria's interview!<strong>

"Hello, everyone! I'm the Varia's mother, Lussaria! I've stolen some time from that girl's program again to discuss a very important matter! This time, not only do I have a sign, but I also have a bigger TV screen to help us discuss this important matter! Welcome to my harmonious household! Isn't it lovely?"

"You call this place harmonious?"

"Ah, Cloud!" Lussaria looked over as the teenager walked in, looking around with a bored expression. "Come, sit down darling!" He then turned his head back to the audience as the girl reluctantly obeyed with a suspicious look on her face. "This is our youngest and only daughter, Cloud!"

"… daughter? Since when did I become part of this family?" The girl asked, raising an eyebrow. Ignoring her, Lussaria raised a hand, blocking his mouth from her view.

"She's actually adopted, but still part of our harmonious little family!" He informed the audience, not even bothering to lower his voice.

"Harmonious?" Cloud questioned again, trying to fit the image in her mind. "You're kidding, right?"

"Cloud!" The girl jumped and leaned back, startled as Lussaria slammed his fist on the kotatsu and leaned forward. "We have a very serious problem to discuss!"

"And what problem would that be?" The girl asked a bit nervously. Lussaria sighed and crossed his arm.

"Now, Cloud," he began, wagging a finger at her, "I know you're the only girl in the family-"

"-I was not aware I was part of this family-"

"and that makes you our little girl-"

"-when exactly was I adopted?"

"But that does not give you permission to run around with so many different boys! You have a problem, Cloud!" Lussaria finished, slamming his fists on the table once more for emphasis.

"A problem?" She repeated slowly, her eye beginning to twitch.

"A boy problem!" The flamboyant man confirmed. "You run around, flirting with too many boys!"

"I do not!" The girl huffed out as she crossed her arms and looked away. Lussaria sighed and shook his head sadly.

"Poor thing, she's in denial. This is something you need to realize and come to terms with, darling!" he cried heroically, causing the girl to lean back with an almost terrified look on her face.

"Lusssuria, I don't have a prob-"

"Oh, do you? Look at this!" He pointed at the screen behind them, which flickered to life, showing pictures of Cloud and Yamamoto. "Boy number one! Yamamoto Takeshi!"

"He's just a friend!" She argued. "A cute friend," she added, "but still a friend!"

"Let's see," Lussuria hummed, pulling out a notebook from under the kotatsu. "You took him to Italy for a trip, and while in Italy, you went on a date to a baseball game-"

"If anyone was on a date that day it was Marco and Yamamoto," Cloud pointed out. Ignoring her, Lussuria continued.

"Almost every time you see him, you latch onto his arm-"

"I don't do that anymore!"

"But you admit you used to do it! Onto to boy number two!" Lussaria gestured dramatically to the screen. "Mukuro Rokudo!"

"Why the _cào _is he on this list?"

"It is an undeniable fact that you two share some sort of bond!" Lussaria declared. "Plus, you two bicker like an old married couple." Cloud gazed at the Varia's Sun Guardian blankly.

"Mukuro… and me… married…" Cloud numbly mumbled with blank eyes.

"And not only do you flirt with him," Lussaria continued, disregarding the girl's horrified expression, "But you also flirt with his student! Fran!" This seemed to snap out of the trance she was thrown into.

"Wait?! Fran? He's just a kid!"

"Not in the future, dear!" Lussaria reminded her, gesturing to the screen which showed a picture of Fran holding Cloud close to him, her head resting against his chest and him holding her against him. "See! We have proof!"

"That picture is taken totally out of context," the girl pointed out, her cheeks faintly blushed with pink. "And he's still just a kid in my timeline!"

"But in the future he's only four or so years older than you, so it could still work."

"The hell? It could still work?" She repeated his words, eyeing him suspiciously. "It's like you want us to get together or something."

"Oh, no, darling!" Lussaria waved his hand dismissively. "Fran's only my second choice for you!"

"Second choice?" She parroted. Lussaria nodded, humming dreamily.

"I've saved my first choice for last," He admitted shyly. "You know what they say! But for now, onto to boy number four, Sawada Tsunayoshi!" Cloud blanched.

"What's wrong with all these examples?" She complained, slamming her first down. "I can get Yamamoto somewhat, but all these others are bullshit! Tsuna's like a brother to me! No, he _is_ a brother to me," she corrected herself. "There's no romantically relationship _at all_."

"But, Cloud," Lussaria reached over and grabbed her hands, almost pulling her across the table as he leaned over to look into her eyes with a dreamy expression. "What if, in order to prove the good relationship between the Chiavarone and the Vongola, you and Tsuna, the next boss of the Vongola, were forced into an arranged marriage, where at first you both despised the idea, but slowly fa-"

"That doesn't even make any sense," she reminded him, "The Chiavarone and the Vongola already have a good relationship, and Dino wouldn't force me into an arranged marriage anyway! Lussaria," she said with a serious tone, "instead of talking about my 'problem', shouldn't we be talking about your soap opera obsession?"

"But, Cloud, your problem affects a lot more people! You can't flirt with all these men! Moderation, darling, moderation!"

"… are you implying that I'm a whore?"

"Onto boy number five!"

"Don't ignore me!"

"Hibari Kyoya!" He gestured dramatically at the screen which revealed a scowling Hibari glaring directly into the camera. Cloud tilted her head in confusion.

"Kyoya? He's on the list? How?"

"Oh, dear, you really are oblivious aren't you?" Lussaria tutted, shaking his head. "But it is quite impressive that your powers of seduction can tame even this wild beast!"

"…powers of seduction? Are you calling me a slut now?"

"Of course not, dear! We're addressing the problem now so that you don't become one later. No daughter of mine will be called a slut!"

"Haven't you been implying that I'm one this whole time?"

"And now, for the final boy in the line-up!" Cloud's expression deadpanned as the lights went out, only leaving an overly dramatic, large spotlight on the blank TV screen. "Boy number six, is… Belphegor!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Cloud stood up, signaling the light booth to turn the lights back on. Once the stage was properly lit once more, she turned to Lussaria with a hard look. "You," she pointed at him, "Ship me," she pointed to herself, "and Bel?" Lastly she pointed at the screen, which was now going through a lovely slideshow of pictures of Bel and Cloud together (it should be noted that most the pictures had cartoon hearts added to them, something Lussaria was quite proud of, since it was his first time editing photos in any way).

"Of course!" Lussaria practically squealed, cupping his own cheeks. "I watched you two grow up and fall in love with each other! You two are my OTP!" For a moment, Cloud stood there, staring at Lussaria, simply not knowing how to respond to this new information. She opened her mouth, then closed it again with a very confused look. After repeating this two more times, she finally spoke.

"Lussaria, why-no, how-"

"This is why, Cloud," Lussaria launched across the table, grabbing the girl's hands and pulling her down to a sitting position once more, interrupting the girl's sentence. "You have to choose Bel!"

"Choose?" she asked with a blank expression. "There is no," she made quotation marks with her fingers, "choosing. There is no list. There is no problem!"

"Cloud, honey, you have a harem," he kindly pointed out, lightly patting her cheek. "There's definitely a problem."

"The harem just a thing, and cannot be used against me in this situation. Why are you so involved in my love life anyway?"

"I just want you to be happy, darling!" was the man's loving response.

"Lussaria, I am happy now, but I'm just too busy to think about this kind of shit right now," the girl stated bluntly.

"But, when will you find you true love, or more importantly," he pointed at the screen, "get to together with Bel!?"

"I don't know," the girl stated, blushing slightly, "Later in life? When I actually have time to think about this stuff rather than thinking about battle strategies and how I'm going to survive every day?"

"And when will that be, Cloud?" Lussaria asked curiously.

"I don't know. When this fucking arc is finally over? It's taking forever," she complained, rubbing the back of her head and sending a pointed look up at the ceiling. "Anyways," she shook her head, then turned sharply to Lussaria. "You're over here talking about my problems and yet you're not even addressing your own! Should we start on the Soap Opera obsession? Or, you know, the fact that you have a collection of dead bo-"

"And that's all the time we have for today, darlings!" Lussaria quickly cut her off, turning to face the audience with a single bead of sweat rolling down one side of his face. "I hope you enjoyed helping out our beautiful daughter with her problems! Please visit us again in our harmonious little home!"

"You're still trying to pass this off as harmonious?"

"Ciao!"

* * *

><p>AN:<p>

So while working on prom, we mostly listen to Pandora's Disney station (because that's the only thing everyone can sing along to and agree on?) and it plays Beauty and the Beast's "Belle" all the time, and so every time I hear it, I keep picturing Cloud as Belle and Bel as Gaston, and it continues to make me giggle. I usually picture Fran as LaFoule too, which just adds more humor. Also, I saw Cinderella (beautiful, gorgeous movie) and now I picture Cloud as Ella with either Bel or Hibari as the prince? And Yita is totally the fairy godmother. Maybe Mukuro as the wicked stepmother (you think I kid, but I do not)?

Okay, this made me sad writing again. The quote made me sad too, because, again, it fit a little too well. Dammit. If you really want to know what my take on all this is, really look at the title of the chapter. I usually put a lot into just two or three simple words to try to get the overall meaning to the chapter. As you can tell, Cloud has a bad habit of letting her emotions build up until it just all becomes too much for her. Not a very good thing to do. But (too hot) HOT DAMN is this a frustrating arc for Cloud. So, naturally, if you feel frustrated while reading this, that's sort of the intended feeling, since Cloud is feeling the same way. But I do enjoy the amount of rebuilding and Varia in this chapter. And I've had that omake sitting around forever waiting to put it in. I probably should have waited longer, but I didn't want to.

Worried Mother Squalo is fun to write, and it's funny because Mukuro has that almost mothering attitude towards Cloud too, but not as obvious. It's basically all Varia in this chapter, which I find to be a great thing, since they're probably the group Cloud is the closest to. And this, I guess, is also an award/apology for making you guys wait for so long, and being so busy and loading you guys up with so many feels for the last few chapters. For once, there is actually some light stuff in here, so here you go! Just, you know, ignore the heavy stuff that's also in this chapter. Yeah.

**Review Responses:**

**RaNDoem:** She just really hard-headed. And stupid. Incredibly, insanely reckless and stupid. Thanks for the review and for answering the question! We have a bunch of hufflepuffs and that's a wonderful thing (and sorry to say, but I'd say that Cloud might be a Ravenclaw, but I'll let you fight me on that).

**Turlehoffmann:** You are the first slytherpuff I have come across and I am honored. It takes talent to get such a weird cross. Eh, my friends say I'm a raveclaw. Thanks for the review and thinking that her box weapons are adorable (PS: you're right).

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** Hell yeah, slytherin bros! Here's an update and thanks for answering the question and review!

**PolkaPox:** I fall in love with Jian and Kashi even more every time I write them, and I've been waiting to put them in for a loooong time. And I agree. Someone needs to get on that fanart. Chop, Chop motherfuckers. Thanks for the review!

**XxSaphirezxX:** They kind of patched up? Kind of maybe? I dunno? You can interpret as you wish, dear reader. I am so proud that I made you're heart break. I'm starting a collection, and I'm doing considerably well. And hell yeah, another Slytherin in the house! I'm glad I prompted you to take the quiz. Thanks for the review, doll!

**Hyapii:** Xanxus would be a great interview, especially considering Cloud may be the only one able to interview him. I don't know about Dino, maybe when she gets back form the future? Their relationship is exactly stable at the moment, but I can totally see an interview where Cloud and Reborn are basically roasting Dino, talking about embarrassing childhood memories. Thanks for the suggestions and the reviews! You have any questions that you would like Cloud to ask Xanxus?

**XxTealJadexX:** I just find it amusing that you number your fics. You have the organization and order that I severely lack. And unfinished fics always suck. That's why I'm going to try my hardest to finish this one. Thanks for the review!

**WinterStormArt:** You, my friend, are one of the few Gryffindors that have answered. It's weird because everyone else has been either a Slytherin like me or a Hufflepuff, and we've had one Slytherpuff which is amazing. Cloud and Dino kind of? Make up. Kind of? Sort of? Take it as you wish. I'm actually very distant from my own brother, so it's sweet and refreshing to write a close relationship like Cloud and Dino's. Are you proud? It's not a cliffhanger this time! Kind of… thanks for the review!

**Ddmahan922:** I think the poor bastard hitting on Cloud should worry about Dino and Squalo more than his potential rivals. Or, if he's being a creep, he might should worry about Cloud herself and the high possibility of receiving her foot in his face should she say so. But I actually have little scenes like that planned out for some side stories and omakes, because Cloud is a hellava flirt and she will totally walk off with some random cute guy she meets much to the anger and jealously of some of her friends. Thanks for the review!

**Theta-McBride:** Thanks for the love and the review!

**Uniquemangalover**: IF YOU THINK THAT'S BAD, THERE ARE ACTUAL TEARS IN THIS CHAPTER! MUAHAHAHAHAH! THANKS FOR THE REVIEW AND ANSWERING THE QUESTION. Seriously, there's been a hella load of hufflepuffs, you guys should start a gang.

**Suntun140:** Isn't she though?! I'm glad somebody picked up on it! Four for you Glen Coco, you go Glen Coco! Thanks for the review!

**Allykrau:** If you thought that was emotional, wait till you see this! I kind of, maybe want to put it in this? Maybe? But, it would be later, of course, but I could see some small plots for this. Either way, I have come to the point where I have to admit that I ship them now. Not OTP yet, though. I am very picky about my OTPS.

**Yuka Tsukino:** You're welcome! I'm happy to answer any question you guys have! Thanks for thinking she's badass, you're making me blush! Thanks for the luck and review!

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** Spring break is ending for me in about a day or so, so I'm updating while I can. Thanks for the review!

**VanillaMilkshake18**: No hugs for you; only tears. And I really want Jian and Kashi too the more I write them. Also Bester, but my cat has basically the same personality, so I think I'm okay in that area. Thanks for the review!

**Guest Reviews:**

**Guest (Chapter 34):** Aw, I'm glad you got excited! Thanks for the review and love and here's an update!

**Guest (Chapter 34):** Ah! Glad you love it so much! Thanks for thinking it's amazing and fro the review! Here's an update, doll!

**Question:**

**(Genuinely curios) What is your favorite relationship Cloud has with another character? It can be any character in the series, my OCs or canon characters!**

_I'm tempted to say Bel and Cloud, or even Dino and Cloud (Squalo and Cloud's relationship is one of my top to write as well), but I think I'm going to explain my love of Cloud and Tsuna's relationship._

_Tsuna's a pretty easily freaked out guy, and Cloud is just so chill a majority of the time, and I really think they balance each other out without even intending to? I found myself writing Tsuna going to Cloud for advice sometimes because he thinks that she can always calm him down. She's also always there to reassure him, especially during Reborn's antics that everyone else seems to just go along with. She's become one of the voices of reasons in her life, and he's a normal connect for her to fall back on. They established that sibling relationship so quickly and I strongly feel that both of them have the utmost love and respect for each other. I don't know, I've always like relationships that can easily comfort or relate strongly to each other through looks, and I find myself imagining Tsuna and Cloud to do that all the time. Mostly looks of pure disbelief. _

**_-Klu_**

**EDIT/IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING POLL:**

**Yo! So, after seeing all the lovely reviews answering the relationship questions, I put a poll on my profile to see who the majority of readers want Cloud to end up with! Go check it out if you're interested. I know I'm interested to see what you guys think. If you guys think of anyone else that you ship Cloud with, let me know and I'll add them to the options. Thanks! **


	36. Of Queens and Men

**Chapter 36: Of Queens and Men**

* * *

><p><strong> "You can be the king but watch the queen conquer."<strong>

**-Nicki Minaj (Monster)**

* * *

><p>"And where the fuck have you been?" Squalo shot at Dayita, who replied with an unimpressed look. "If you're sticking around, then we're putting you to use. You should have been at the briefing." Laughing, she waved him off, causing more anger on his part.<p>

"Relax, Squ-chan!"

"Don't fucking call me that!"

"While you were having your little get-together," she continued, as if he hadn't just went off on her, and was now readied with his sword. "I was retrieving information my contacts received."

"Information?" Lussaria repeated, tilting his head. Squalo's eyes narrowed and Bel shifted behind me, crossing his arms.

"What kind of information?"

"Information that you would find especially interesting, _your highness_," She cooed, winking at Bel. Fran and I barely managed to give each other side glances, knowing exactly what information she was talking about. Guilt boiled inside me, but my features remained indifferent, having already discussed this with Mukuro.

"It seems as if your dear, thought to be dead brother is heading this operation on the other side," Yita bluntly stated, now idly inspecting her nails. Bel stiffened from behind me, and then bypassed me, knives in hand, moving towards Dayita.

"Explain," he hissed, holding a knife at the space next to her.

"And none of your usual bullshit," Squalo added, ready to attack the illusion I assumed Dayita had made.

"Turns out, your brother isn't dead," Dayita shrugged casually, "and is the real commander of this operation. And don't be so surprised that I know about your past, Bel-chan!" She laughed, patting his cheek, then promptly stepping back to avoid his attack. "I know _so_ many things, after all."

"And what the fuck do you want us to do with this information?" Squalo asked, still wary of the illusionist, and miffed now that her illusion had been dispelled.

"How should I know? And why should I care?" Dayita sighed. "I just assumed that you would like to know. He's apparently the storm funeral wreath if that's interesting," she added, twirling a finger around one of her dark locks of hair that fell out of her braid. Squalo huffed, already fed up with dealing with her.

"Why should we trust you?" He asked her. "How the fuck did you get this information anyway?"

"I have my ways," Dayita said smugly, "and as for trusting me, you shouldn't. That doesn't make true information any less true, however." Bel clicked his tongue and put his weapons away and Squalo mirrored his actions, both well aware that they weren't getting anything else out of her. Dayita hummed happily and bounced to my side, slipping her arm around my waist and pulling me towards her.

"Besides, I'm only here to make sure Cloud-chan's safe," she cooed, leaning her head on my shoulder. I sighed, and casually pinched a pressure point under her arm, causing her to squeak and let go of me. She puckered her lips and pouted at me.

"If Rasiel's really alive…" Bel muttered darkly, trailing off with a scowl on his face. "I buried his body myself, there's no way he could have survived."

"If he is alive though," Squalo input, in deep though himself, "there's no doubt that that bastard Byakuran had something to do with it. Either way, we'll continue with the plan. All that's changed is that we know who we're fighting," Squalo concluded, moving forward once again. Bel clicked his tongue and followed, along with the rest of the group. Fran met my eyes once more and I looked away, stepping in front of him.

I was still feeling guilty, after all.

* * *

><p><em>"What do you mean 'leave it to Dayita'?"<em>

_"I assure you, little Chiavarone," Mukuro said, leaning back in his throne, "there are no illusions to my words; I mean just what I say."_

_"Yita's got it handled," Fran put in from his position, lying on the grass beside me. Hannah shuffled from my other side, having been acting strange ever since Mukuro's return._

_"But I'm the one with the information," I said. "I can't just keep it from them, especially now that I'm here. This isn't like the last two arcs, all these bad things aren't needed, they don't need to happen," I argued. "Let me help, Mukuro."_

_"So what? So you can be killed again?" Mukuro asked coldly. I bit my bottom lip and looked away, the air turning sharp around us. "I will not allow you to involve yourself so deeply like before. That woman has means of obtaining the information, and if those means lack, I have it in my power to lead her there, even in my slightly weakened state."_

_"Slightly?" Fran repeated, then rolled his body over to avoid the trident that was now embedded in the ground where his head had been. "Isn't that a bit of an understatement, master?" Mukuro clicked his tongue, then looked back at me. _

_"I will not allow you to become involved again," He stated. I opened my mouth to argue once more, but Mukuro slammed the butt of his newly reformed trident on the ground, causing a loud, metallic echo to sound throughout the garden. _

_"And that," Mukuro said coolly, "is the end of it."_

* * *

><p>"This is going so much smoother with your help, Cloud-chan!" Lussaria called happily from behind his box weapon, who was healing those with small wounds. "I'm so glad you're here to help~"<p>

"I might as well be doing something," I sighed, closing up the wound I had been working on. The man let out a relived breath, and took the rag he had been biting down on out of his mouth. He tenderly checked his side and looked up at me with amazement. I shooed him off before he could say anything, motioning for the woman with a dislocated shoulder to approach me. Dayita loudly sighed in a bored manner from her position leaning on the wall. Ignoring her, knowing that she only wanted attention, I focused fully on relocated the shoulder.

"I'd be swamped without you here," Lussaria assured me and the long haired and finger nailed subordinates walked off. "As long as you're taking care of the worse injuries and I get the smaller ones, we'll be done in no time. Hm?" Lussaria tilted his head and put his hand on his ear piece. However, with how loud Squalo was, I could clearly hear his through the ear piece.

_"Levi, Lussaria. Discovered a 6 funeral wreath. That woman was right after all. Go support Bel and Fran!"_

"Levi's busy. The north side just exploded, the guards are done for," Lussaria reported.

_"What?"_

"Levi has already gone there... However, with Cloud's help, we've been able to heal a lot and there are only a few left, even with the ones coming in," Lussaria said, not hiding the obvious fact that he wanted to go and fight.

_"…. Is that bitch still there?"_

"Right here, Squ-chan!" Dayita called loudly. I could hear Squalo grumble something, and then he came to a decision.

_"Fine. Lussaria, go back up Bel and Fran; we need to take out the funeral wreath as soon as possible. Give the brat an ear piece first, then get moving."_ Lussaria, already practically brimming with excitement from being able to fight, dug an ear piece set out and handed it to me. I set it up quickly, still annoyed with the whole situation as I watched Lussaria go with a wave and a wink.

"Let me guess?" I asked sourly, "Sit here and heal like a good little girl?"

_"And not a thing else,"_ Squalo affirmed. _"I'll personally slice you to bits if you disobey orders. If anything happens, go to boss. You got it, brat?"_

"… fine," I sighed, still miffed.

_"Stay the fuck where you are brat!" _Squalo finished. I sighed again, and crossed my arms. Dayita giggled at my childish reaction.

"Poor Cloud-chan," she teased. "Grounded from fighting."

"Whatever," I said, gesturing for the next injured subordinate as the woman with the now relocated shoulder thanked me. "I'm just glad I'm able to do something," I admitted, finding comfort in healing. "I'd go insane if I couldn't do anything to help."

"Insane, hm?" Dayita mused, her eyes lighting up. "Ha! You don't know the word, Cloud-chan!"

"Hm?" I gave her a side-glance, moving on to another patient.

"It would be fun," the dark-skinned woman hummed, almost dreamily. "To show you what insanity really is."

* * *

><p>Dayita and I glanced at each other, confirming that we both felt the same thing. I scowled, knowing I wasn't at my full capacity since I had just gotten through with healing so many, but none the less, I grabbed Jian's box from my pocket, and opened it, focusing solely on defense.<p>

_"Brat! Can you hear me?"_

"Already on it," I affirmed, as the bamboo shoots covered the entire room, the other subodinates watching in amazement. I scowled as I felt the impact against the walls of the bamboo, knowing I couldn't protect the entire castle. I could only hope that Xanxus was okay. Despite being well aware he could take care of himself, I still worried about the boss. Letting out an almost ragged sigh, I called the bamboo back to me, relief filling me as I felt most of the flames returning.

"You guys all right?" I called to those behind me, who shakily nodded. I frowned, looking at the rubble of the castle around us, the edge of the 'box' I had created making a definite line around us. My frown deepened when I realized that I had lost connection with the others through my head piece. Right as I noticed Dayita was nowhere to be found, I stiffened as two presences came closer and an eerie voice sounded.

"I was wondering what that strange shape was in the rubble. It must be fate that it's the target that Byakuran-sama wanted," a voice drawled, tinging with familiarity. My eyes narrowed as I took in the two hovering the air before us, one wearing a sickening grin I was all to used to, and yet it took on a ghastly shape now.

"You're Bel's brother," I stated, box weapon ready in hand, Squalo's words ringing through my head. "Rasiel, right?"

"Hm?" his grin widened. "It doesn't matter now, ushehshe! He's dead, so I'm the official king now!"

"You were the rightful heir to begin with," Olgert stated from his side.

"Naturally," Rasiel stated, leaning back in his throne confidently. "And now all that's left to do is to capture this brat. The rest of the castle is completely crushed after all, ushshe! Olgert," he motioned with his hand. "Take care of this."

"Of course, Siel-sama," he bowed slightly, and released his box weapon once more. The subordinates behind me, stepped back, but I quickly put my ring into the box again, this time allowing Jian to come out. Adjusting to the situation quickly, the giant panda hit the ground harshly with his paws, causing a spurt of bamboo to spring forward and penetrate the rain elephant. The animal cried out sharply as Jian put his paws on the shoots, activating the cloud flames in them. Olgert seemed to realize what Jian was doing as he panicked and quickly called the animal back into its box. Reabsorbing the shoots, a considerably larger Jian remained on his hind legs and let out a loud sound of defiance and then promptly slammed his front legs back onto the ground, taking up a defensive stance in front of me.

"That box weapon…" Olgert muttered, staring at Jian in shock. "It has two attributes!"

"Specially made," I said, repeating the words I was told before, "just for me." While his butler had a worried look on his face, Rasiel's expression remained bored.

"Rasiel-sama, wh-"

"So, the brat has a unique box weapon," Rasiel admitted, with a causal wave of his hand. "That means nothing to the king; only that Byakuran-sama's package will be delivered slightly damaged," he finished with a nasty grin, sending chills down my spine, "that's it." My eyes widened as a sudden grogginess hit me and I reprimanded myself for forgetting Rasiel's box weapons. I coughed up blood unexpectedly and fell to my knees, my hands numbly moving to my ears to feel blood dribbling out of them as well. I breathed out deeply, hoping the others with me were only affected to the extent I was as well, hoping they wouldn't die because of me. My hands remained over my ears and I bit my lower lip harshly from the pain of healing them. My hearing returned slowly, but my vision still blurred. With my hearing however, I did manage to hear someone approach, and from that, I could guess when to push myself back to put distance on between us.

"Hm? Ushehshe, what's this? I knew your older self could heal from the file, but I wasn't sure about this version," Rasiel's voice sneered from above. I covered one eye and managed to see blurry shapes of Olgert on the ground and Rasiel remaining on his throne in the sky. I bit back a sharp cry when I realized how much it hurt to heal my eyes. "You healing yourself makes it easier, though," Rasiel stated thoughtfully, "now Byakuran-sama won't be angry because you're injured."

"From what you're saying," I said, now with my vison completely intact, and eyeing a groggy Jian pushing himself up from the ground, sniffing the air for me. "It sounds like you think I'm coming with you willingly."

"I can keep this up for as long as I want to," Rasiel jeered back, "and while you can keep healing yourself, those behind you don't have the same luxury." I paled, remembering them, remembering those I had just finished healing. I scowled, seeing the truth of his words. "So," He continued, knowing he had me pegged, "either come quietly, of we can continue this game. It's up to you, _princess_."

I glared at him, and he simply grinned in return, reminding me too much of Bel. I held up my open box weapon and called Jian back into it. Olgert lifted his chin and approached me once more, thinking I had given up. I recalled Squalo's earlier command that if anything went wrong, go to straight to boss. I glanced over in the direction I was sure Xanxus was, assured he had survived the collapse of the castle.

I took one look in that direction and promptly ran the opposite way.

* * *

><p>Hauling ass through the forest reminded me of training with Zhanna and her family, which I reminded myself, compared to this situation, was worse. Except for the fact that a giant elephant landed in front of me. That part was not part of my Russian-assassin training.<p>

I slid to a stop, and dove out of the way as the elephant charged forward. I looked back, scowling to see Olgert and an amused looking Rasiel once again. However, I had received a small victory for myself, having gotten them away from the others, assuring myself that I would be the only one injured by Rasiel's box weapons.

"The king is becoming bored with this game," Rasiel stated, idly. "Why don't you just give up? The Vongola is crushed anyways; there's no one left to protect you."

"Who says I need protection?" I shot back hotly, that particular nerve being hit a little too much lately.

"You could have all the protection you want, princess," Rasiel taunted, a large grin on his face, "but a king gets what he wants."

"And what a boring ruler that is," I voice drawled from behind me, as a figure revealed themselves, "one who gets what they want without coming down from his thrown. All the best rulers," Dayita said, slipping her arms around my waist and hugging me from behind, "come down from Olympus to show off a bit, you know?" I squirmed out of her grip and stepped away from her.

"Where the _cào_ have you been?" I hissed, glaring at Yita now. "And why did you suddenly disappear when we were attacked?" She shrugged, and laughed lightly.

"I only wanted to wait until you led them far enough away so the others wouldn't be affected," Dayita explained lightly. "I knew that you wouldn't go to Xanxus because you didn't want anyone else to get hurt."

"You knew about his box weapons?" I repeated.

"I know a lot of things, Cloud-chan," she replied, shifting her eyes back to Rasiel and Olgert. "Now, run along so the grown-ups can play, all right?" I huffed, miffed by her comment and opened my mouth to retort, but froze and she fixed me with a stare.

"Cloud," she said, coldly, sending shivers down my spine, "leave. Now." I nodded quickly and began stepping backwards, before turning fully and running, reforming a plan in my head to find Bel, Fran and Lussaria. Even though I wanted to stay, I had full confidence in the illusionist.

Dayita could take care of herself.

* * *

><p>Rasiel glanced between the two below him, and he quickly looked over the newcomer. He smirked, simply viewing the dark-skinned woman as another person standing in his way that a king could easily crush. Olgert however, looked over the woman with caution, taking in her confident air and smug expression.<p>

"So, how about it, Goldilocks," Dayita jested, smiling brilliantly, "you want to play?"

"A king doesn't bore himself playing with peasants," Rasiel scoffed, motioning for Olgert. "Crush her."

"…yes, Siel-sama," Olgert obeyed, pushing aside the dangerous and unnerving feeling her was getting from the woman below them. He quickly obeyed, sending his rain elephant to charge once more, but was surprised when the two figures burst into mist on contact. "An illusion?" Olegert realized and began looking around. Rasiel frowned, not remembering ever sensing any mist flames. Giggling erupted from beside the two and they looked over to see the woman casualy sitting on a branch, swinging her feet in the manner of a child.

"If you're wondering when I cast the illusion," she informed them, "it was the moment you first arrived." Her figure once again faded as the elephant destroyed the tree she had been sitting in. "And if you're wondering if knowing you're under an illusion will help you break it," her voice sounded again, this time leaning against a tree on their other side. "I can assure you, _your highness_," she called, sending him a bright, absolutely terrifying smile, "it won't." Rasiel clicked his tongue having become fed up with her games.

"Enough is enough," He growled, activating his own box weapons again. "Die." He watched with satisfaction as the woman's head nearly imploded in front of them and her body dropped limply to the ground. He hummed with pleasure, and snickered. "Ushehe… now to find that brat. She probably ran off when we were in that illusion."

"Oh, she did," Dayita said, startling the two form her position in another tree. "And knowing her speed, she's long gone by now." Rasiel glared at the woman and looked back, noticing the body was still there. Olgert narrowed his eyes and looked between the two.

"But, how-"

"I have my ways, and my tricks," Dayita began, swinging her feet once more.

"I have my reason and manners," the mutilated body said, pushing itself up, and staring eerily up at them.

"And there's not really much sense to any of it," another image of Dayita admitted from below them, in her original spot. "And the reason?" she asked, looking between her other images. They both shrugged in response, causing the first to smile. "For fun I suppose. And unluckily for you, I've almost had my fill with you two."

"Ushehe, as if you could defeat a king!" Rasiel said, still confident it was all one illusion. He activated his bats once more and sent out another round of storm waves, stronger than before. The figures didn't waver as their heads imploded once more, one even having the nerve to laugh at his futile actions.

"How fun! You think you can win!"

"It's cute isn't it?" The one from the tree asked.

"Olgert!" Rasiel called, "crush them all! Do it all at once!" Olgert immediately obeyed, summoned two more elephants, and sent them to crush each of the figures, two of which immediately disappeared on impact. Rasiel grinned confidently as the elephant returned near its owner, revealing an injured looking Dayita from under it.

"It was your mistake," Rasial called. "To show yourself. I saw through your illusion immediately and I picked out the real one, ushehshe!"

"I'd expect nothing less from the king," Olgert agreed, and yet, continued to look around with caution, still feeling that something was wrong.

"Oh, that's adorable." Rasiel froze, his grin still plastered on his face, a single bead of sweat rolling down. "You think you can actually beat me." A snap sounded through the forest, and everything, all the damage, the woman's dead body, all traces of the battle, were wiped away, evaporating into mist. Dayita sat with her legs crossed and hand on her chin thoughtfully, not even looking at her opponents.

"I suppose I could put you in an endless cycle of winning," she mused out loud, "but that's what I did last time, and I can't repeat a play like that so close together because that gets _so_ boring. I could just cause a blood clot, I suppose," she thought, sending chill down Olgert's spine. She then shook her head. "But that would be boring as well," she frowned and sighed, as she weren't playing with lives. "I will," she concluded, standing up, "just overwhelm them. Yes," she concluded, nodding, "that's always a fun way to go." She clapped her hands together, smiling brightly. "I'll overwhelm their minds and drive them insane!" She then reached and retrieved a box weapon and two rings. Olgert narrowed his eyes, recognizing the rings easily.

"Siel-sama, those rings…" he warned, paling, "those are hell rings! She had two hell rings!" Rasiel frowned, realizing the danger of the situation, and yet, still convincing himself that he could handle it. He was a king, after all.

"Those may as well be illusions, Olgert," he reminded his butler. "Just quickly finish her." Olgert gulped, but none-the-less followed his orders.

"Oh, I assure you," Dayita called, deciding on one ring to wear and admiring it on her hand, igniting it with mist flames as Olgert's box weapon neared. "This is no illusion." Vines sprang out from the ring on her hand, and encased the elephant completely. It shrieked and writhed while it was crushed and enveloped in the vines. Olgert and Rasiel wisely retreated a few feet.

"You do know," Dayota began as the vines retreated, leaving nothing but the bones of the animal, and then continued to wrap around everything, springing up from around her feet, until vines encased everything around the three, "that every hell ring has a story behind it? They're all so very interesting," she recalled lightly, "and so very different."

"I don't care for stories much," Rasiel spat, wanting to finish this fight. "Olgert," he commanded again, annoyance clear in his tone, "finish her. Crush her completely." Olgert nodded, and moved to attack, but a vine shot up and wrapped around his foot, causing him to yell out and it brought him roughly to the ground. As the vines moved over his butler, Rasiel paled, noticing that not only were vines constricting his butlet, but also snakes, who were now making deep gashes and bites over Olgert's body as the man was sinking deeper into the mass of vines that now encased everything around them.

"Oh, but this one is so interesting," Dayita said, completely ignoring the screams of the man as the vines encased him, reaching out and grabbing his box weapons as well. Rasiel's thrown shot up, dodging a vine that had reached for him. He lit his storm ring, only to look around in hidden horror and his bats, too, were quickly being brought down by the vines. He was forced to leave his thrown soon enough, and scowled as the woman moved to sit in the now, vine-covered thrown, making herself completely comfortable and looking at place in the position of power.

"There was a man who sought truth, a man who sought himself, and perhaps a power that was above himself," she began, watching with amusement as Rasiel frantically tried to avoid the vines that shot up around him, eventually making a web like structure, so he could not escape. "There was a man who questioned everything, and a man who questioned himself. This man sought peace, and this man sought silence, and so he concluded himself, alone, in the jungle near his village for so long, for so very long, and he sat in silence, and questioned, himself, nature, a higher power, the man asked, and begged, and he wondered. Until, eventually, he had asked so much, and wondered so much, that he was devouring himself," she told, smiling a bit wider as Rasiel was dragged down by the web of vines that now encased him, screaming in agony as the vines completely crushed his legs and snakes slithered over his entire body.

"And while this man devoured himself he noticed that this jungle was being devoured too, by the life it had been giving to. The jungle was covered in plant and life and vines, and the man watched as the vines would slowly cover the jungle and everything it took life from day by day, and the man wondered too, if these vines, these magnificent pieces of life that stopped at nothing, could devour him too. And so, he roped his neck with vines and he remained there, letting the vines take him, and devour him, his spirit living on, taking on the vines will to devour everything as well. And what a sad story that is, isn't it?" She asked, now practically looking down at Rasiel as the vines covered him more and more, ignoring his screams and empty pleas. "To let yourself be devoured, instead of devouring yourself. But, I guess…" she trailed off, watching from her throne as Rasiel was completely covered and crushed by the vines and snakes surrounding him, "that man is devouring you now, isn't he?" She trailed off into laughter, watching as Rasiel's pathetic, reaching hand was submerged.

She hummed happily, leaning her head back with her eyes closed, dispelling the illusion entirely around her, leaving two bodies, writhing in pain before her throne and absolutely no signs of her jungle of death and misery. Dayita looked down at her fallen opponents in cold amusement, appearing absolutely regal in the throne she has easily taken. She tilted her head and a large snake uncoiled itself from Rasiel's neck and made its way over to its owner, leaving behind two neat, bite wounds on the fallen commander's neck.

"Pathetic, aren't they Aashi?" Dayita asked the snake as it make its way up to her neck and draped itself across it comfortably, only lifting its head to nuzzle Dayota's nose affectionately. Dayite giggled quietly and shifted an open box weapon and two hell rings in her hand, neither of the rings having made its way onto her fingers.

"As if a king could possibly beat a queen such as myself."

* * *

><p>I never expected a panda to be a good horse, but Jian had proven me wrong. After healing his eyes and ears from earlier, he had refused to go back into his box, whining loudly every time I made a move to call him back. After a few sniffs and a lot of panda eyes (which the notebook swore were more effective than puppy eyes), I eventually let him stay out. Somehow or another, him staying out led to me riding on top of him as we quickly made our way through the woods. One upside to this (besides me not having to walk) was that Jian could use his sense of smell to find the others. This had been going well at first, until Jian sharply turned, picking up a new scent and began bounding off in a random direction.<p>

"Woa! Jian!" I called, having to wrap my arms around his strong neck so that I wouldn't fall off. "Slow, slow, slow!" He huffed and continued at the same speed, as if trying to tell me something. I grumbled as we burst into a clearing, only to be surrounded by Millefiore foot soldiers. "Dammit, Jian!" I whined. He huffed in response, but from the look her threw back at me, I could tell he felt guilty. He rose to his hind legs as our enemies noticed up and I slid off his back, landing in a squat and bringing out my guns, shooting the two soldiers who had tried to go on either side of Jian to get to me.

Putting all my frustrations into my battle persona, I fought coldly, having to remind myself of my morals to maim and not kill. It almost scared me how my anger had gotten to me in this fight, where I had been fully prepared the shoot a man in the face, but had realized what I had been about to do last minute, and instead kicked him in the neck. It scared me even when I realized that I was enjoying the rush the battle brought me, but I shoved that to the back of my head to deal with some other time.

I scowled when I realized their numbers weren't dwindling and that Jian was becoming smaller and smaller in size as he, too, took down our enemies with the moves my future self (and apparently, Fon, according to Ipin) had taught him. Disarming my opponent, I swung to take out a box weapon that leapt for Jian's throat, electrocuting it with the end of the pole. I dodged another swing at me and dove for Jian, rolling behind a tree as bullets followed our trail.

I shifted Jian in my arms, and he mewled, now the size a baby panda. I brought out his box to return Jian, but looked up, about to dive out of the way once more as a soldier stood in front of us, weapons raised. I froze as something tore through him, leaving a large, gaping hole in his chest. The body swayed and then dropped, leaving me and Jian to stare at it. I blinked again as a large light sparked to life from behind us, loud screams tearing through the forest. I got up, Jian still in my arms and peeked around the tree, seeing numerous charred bodies.

"Is that?"

"It is!" My head snapped up, towards the branch of the tree I had been hiding behind. Two figures jumped down and approached me, nearly bouncing up to me. I stiffened as they flung their arms around me and leaned into me, almost sending me down with the two's sudden weight.

"We haven't see you in so long!"

"You remember us, right?" I blinked as they pulled back where I could take in their skull masks covering their faces.

"Shura… and Sasha?" I guessed, not knowing who else they could be, and knowing that they seemed familiar.

"That's right!" The left said.

"You got it!"

"Why are you guys here?" I asked them, looking around to make sure there were no more enemies.

"We got done with one of our clean-ups earlier," the left explained, throwing their arm around me.

"So we decided to drop by to help you guys out," the right finished, mirroring their twin.

"Ah! This is Jian, right?" The left asked, pinching Jian's cheek.

"So cute!" The other completed. Jian mewled softly in complaint, but was really too shy to lash out at them.

"Wait, if you two are here," I questioned, shaking them off and turning to face them, "are the others here as well?"

"Yep!" Sasha confirmed. "Ah!"

"Here's mother right now!" The other finished, pointing behind me as a lanky figure jumped down from the trees, and sauntered over to us, a sniper rifle on her back. I smiled widely, completely relieved to see her.

"Inna!" I called and ran forward. Her hand reached out as I approached and she ruffled my hair. I laughed in response as the twins joined up, enjoying the presence of familiar people, who seemed like they haven't changed from my timeline.

_'It's a pleasure to see you again, Cloud'_ Inna showed me on the screen of a PDA.

"Same here, Inna," I said, genuinely. "Where's Alik?" I asked, glancing around, half expecting the laid back weapons-specialist to jump out of the trees as well.

_'He is with the captain of the Varia, aiding him on the east side.'_

"Squalo?" I affirmed. She nodded, then turned to the twins, holding her PDA up to them. Their posture changed suddenly after reading it, becoming far more anxious and closed than I was used to.

"Ah, you see mother-"

"He _was_ with us-"

"And then we sensed Cloud-"

"-and we got excited." Inna typed something else into her PDA with a cold aura around her.

"Yes, mother," the twins said together, bowing slightly. "We left him." At first, I thought Inna wasn't going to do anything. Then, she suddenly grabbed the twin's ears through their masks, and slung them into the forest again. "Yes, mother," they said sadly, before they left. "We'll go find him again." Inna nodded in approval and turned back to me. I blinked, not really knowing if I should question what happened or not.

_'It seems that my children have left your sun guardian behind in the woods,' _Inna typed, preventing me from having to ask.

"Ah," I replied numbly, "I see." Inna made a sighing motion with her body and shook her head. She began walking forward and motioned for me to follow. "Inna?" I asked her after a while. She tilted her head in acknowledgement. "What exactly are you guys doing here?" Inna quickly typed and held up the screen above her shoulder.

_'We have been eliminating the Millefiore's other smaller forces and allies while the Vongola takes out the main forces. Being allies of the Vongola, this is how we are aiding them in their time of need with our specialty. With how our numbers have dropped,'_ she typed_, 'it is all we can do to help.'_ My stomach twisted at her words.

"You've lost a lot…" I muttered sadly, shifting Jian on my arms. Inna nodded in agreement, her face remaining hidden by the mask as we stepped over bodies with gaping holes in them, no doubt thanks to the woman walking in front of me. Inna stopped and turned to me, holding the PDA up to my face.

_'So have you.'_ I opened my mouth to respond, but froze as a harsh a brash presence made itself known. I moved to turn around but was roughly grabbed from the hood of Fran's Varia jacket and spun around, forced to make contact with angry, mismatched eyes. Jian grumbled at the sudden movement, but I hugged him tighter, much like he was a teddy bear.

"Brat," Zhanna sneered, the scars covering her face highlighting her expression. "You've got a shitload of explaining to do." I paled, and smiled at the woman nervously.

"Hey, Zhanna," I lamely greeted. "Long time now see, right? Well, for you at least…." I gulped as she frowned harshly.

"That was the wrong thing to say, wasn't it?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**POLL NOTICE:**

So, out of pure curiosity, I put a poll up on my profile about who you guys want Cloud to end up with romantically. So far, with the few people who have voted, Mukuro's in the lead? Which surprised me, and I find it hilarious. If you guys are interested head over to my profile to check it out. If you're stuck between two, you have a choice to pick two options. And if you have anyone else you ship Cloud with, just let me know, and I'll add them to the options.

Dayita gets her big part in this chapter, which I have been waiting for, because this is one of the first scenes I pictured early on in the early stages of her character. Also, I realized how similar Xanxus and Zhanna are? Like, with how they use their flames too, which I didn't really realize until now. The scars are another thing I didn't connect till now too. Well, I cut it off early (because it's late and there is school tomorrow, and I'm half afraid my parents are going to come in and kill me for catching me up so late), but next chapter there is a scene between them that I already have half-written out where I kind of put all of this together.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter! I just wanted to get something out before I had to start cramming like hell. The school year's almost over, and yet, my summer is full of camps, so I do not get much of a break. Whoop whoop.

Oh, and I've also been waiting forever for this chapter just to put that quote.

**Review Responses:**

**Hoshikasa:** Thanks for the review and for the question! I love writing Fran and Cloud's relationship, especially now that Cloud's becoming more comfortable with Fran knowing her so well. And thank you for the blessing from the inspiration god. I needed it.

**Ddmahan922:** The funniest thing to me about Xanxus's view of Cloud (which will come up later) is that Xanxus always sees Cloud as that strange little girl that knew not to bother him running around the Varia HQ. And when I says always, I mean _always_. Which explains why he didn't treat he any different because he saw her as the same. And yes, mama Squalo is always fun to write, along with Bester (who reminds me a little too much of my own cat). Thanks for the review!

**Shirokuromokona:** That is the best explanation of Xanxus I have ever heard and it has made me love his character even more (if that was possible?). Four for you, Glen Coco. You go, Glen Coco. Thanks for the review and the totally awesome character analysis!

**Allykrau:** I'm glad you liked the last chapter! And I believe we were discussing Squalo/Xanxus. And are you trying to pressure me to put Cloud and Hibari together? There's a poll for that now, to use popular opinion and peer pressure to make me decide the final paring (but like, waaaaaay, waaaay done the line). Thanks for the love and the review!

**Melodichummingbird**: Aw, thanks for the love! I had fun going back to the older-chapter feels where Cloud was just wreaking havoc and growing up. And thanks for saying that I captured their personalities. That really means a lot to me. Thanks for the review!

**Ibara yuki:** Thanks for the review and answer! Here's another update!

**Raven-V-Blackshade**: I'm going to pretend that I totally meant for that dynamic to happen. But in all seriousness, I'm so glad you brought this up, because I didn't really even notice it. Dino was forced into this position at a young age, and he tried so hard to contain Cloud, but you know, Cloud being Cloud, does not respond well to that kind of handling. And then there's Squalo, who Cloud responds to great and who gives her room for growth without suffocating her like Dino unknowingly does. With Cloud's relationship with her father, it's great that she had other role models to look up to, Squalo being one of the most prominent ones by far. And nah, you're not harping at all, and I totally understand what you mean. Dino was nowhere near ready to take on an entire mafia family, let alone raise his own sister at such a young age. Thanks for the awesome paragraph and review!

**WinterStormArt**: I love that Fran and Cloud's relationship is relatively recent, and yet that's been one of the most popular answers. I love writing scenes with them because of that adorableness though (and the adorableness only increases when younger!Fran comes into the story). Yeah, there's kid of (?) a cliffie this time. Sorry, friend! I mean, we are friends, right? Friendship all around! Thanks for the review, friend.

**Silvenstein:** Their children will be wicked smart and beautiful and take over the world. Actually, you know what, for the sake of the world, maybe they shouldn't have children. Thanks for the review!

**Angelacorus:** Thanks for the review and for answering the question! There's a poll up now if you want to submit your ships (nobody has voted for Yamamoto yet, you might want to go help him out).

**PolkaPox:** If this tells you anything, I can't wait to get this arc other with, so Cloud can start talking normally and safely with a certain someone, and began establishing their wacky and weird relationship. Here's an update, not so amazingly fast, but an update nonetheless. Thanks for the answer and the review!

**Yuka Tsukino:** I want twenty unicorn box weapons, stat. Chop, chop, motherfuckers. Thanks for the review!

**RaNDoem:** Ah, I'm so glad you like Dayita! There's a shit ton of her in this chapter, so I hoped you enjoyed! And I'm going to let that dead bodies comment slide and leave that between you and your new OTP buddy. Thanks for the review!

**Theta-McBride:** Thanks for the lovely review!

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** I can't wait for Cloud and Dino to get back to a stable relationship, it's kind of killing me right now. And yeah, Cloud's very familiar with a lot of people, to the point that they're family. Thanks for the review!

**Eruruu4:** Mother Squalo is the best Squalo, and big brother Fran is the best Fran (no matter how awkward he is with dealing with these situations). Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Uniquemangalover:** That's the goal. Torture and complete emotional mutilation for my readers. And yes, Bel and Cloud do mix together. Like dangerous chemicals, that similarly leave destruction in their wake. Yay! Thanks for the review!

**VanillaMilkshake18:** I think Bester is my favorite box weapon too. And Bel, Cloud and Mukuro interactions are fun to write as well. Thanks for answering and for the review!

**Uzumaki Kana:** Dude, I almost forgot about the harem and I'm the author. The harem in love, the harem is life. Thanks for the review!

**Lady Syndra**: Writing the Bester scene was definitely the highlight of last chapter for me. I have to credit my cat for inspiration, however. He reminds me little too much of Bester. Thanks for the review!

**Turtlehoffmann2252**: Be pride of your Slytherpuffiness, for it is your birthright… maybe? I don't know, but that's a pretty cool birthright, if you ask me. Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Klariz anime:** Hm, I don't think it counts as incest, unless they are actually related. Thanks for the question and review though!

**AnimeKpop**: Aw, thanks so much! And thanks for answering the question and for reviewing! You rock!

**Guest:**

**Skylime:** I've come to love writing Cloud and Fran's relationship, and I can't wait to continue it in the story, especially after this arc (little Fran, although a major piece of shit, is totes adorbs after all, and the dynamic really changes) Thanks for the review!

**Guest (chapter 1):** I am not the least bit surprised, not one bit. Thanks for pointing it out!

**Question: (Going Avatar here)**

**If you could bend/control one element based on your personality, which of the four elements (earth, fire, water, or air) would it be?**

I think mine would be water? I'm usually pretty chill and adaptable, and my whole philosophy in life is basically do whatever the fuck you want as long as you don't affect others in a negative way. I also like change a lot, and that's a big factor in water.


	37. Small Talk

**Chapter 37: Small Talk**

* * *

><p><strong>"I cannot stand small talk, because I feel like there's an elephant standing in the room shitting all over everything and nobody is saying anything. I'm just dying to say, 'hey, do you ever feel like jumping off a bridge?' or 'Do you feel an emptiness inside your chest at night that is going to shallow you?' But you can't say that at a cock tail party."<strong>

**-Paul Gilmartin**

* * *

><p>"Give me one good fucking reason," Zhanna spat as she glared at me hotly, "why I shouldn't punish you right here and now for what you did."<p>

"To be honest," I breathed out, almost a laugh, "I don't really have one. Not a good one, at least," I added with a grin. "But, if you want, I could bullshit something right here and now for you." Zhanna clicked her tongue, and promptly dropped me. I easily landed in a crouch, still cradling Jian.

"You're a little shit like always, little horse," Zhanna sneered, looking down at me, "'cept now your just… littler." She scrunched her nose. "And scrawny, as always." I frowned, practically pouting.

"I'm not that scrawny…" I whined, turning my head to the side only to see Inna making laughing motions. I gave her an offended glance. Zhanna sighed loudly, stretching her arms behind her head and yawning.

"I guess we should be regrouping back with tho-"

_"Oh, no."_ We tensed as the voice sounded through the air around us. Zhanna shifted in front of me, placing herself between me and the image now flickering in front of us. I hugged Jian tighter, and he snuggled closer to me for comfort, mirroring my emotions. My interactions with the man I saw in front of us echoed in my mind and it seemed that I was just now grasping the danger of the situation I was in. If this man, Byakuran, wanted me, then it was a miracle that I was not in his grasp. If I was in his grasp and he had the information I, the information Hannah possessed…. I understood all at once why my future self took her own life. And I understand that maybe, at this moment, I would be prepared to do the same, if not for the reminder that I had people left that I couldn't leave behind. I didn't like to think about the fact that my future self didn't believe the same.

_"This is merely a little break. Both the main battle in Italy and the Melone Base in Japan… you have been most entertaining,"_ Byakuran's smiling image allowed. Zhanna's eyes narrowed.

"Through the comm devices, huh?" She muttered darkly, then spat, glaring harshly at the image of the enemy. "He set up a fucking show."

_"This pre-game battle had a very important purpose, you know. Like, you've shown me the true abilities of the Vongola's most powerful squad, as well as the location of Cloud-chan."_ Our bodies tensed, as if Byakuran were actually here in person. My eyes widened slightly, looking straight through his, feeling as though we were actually making eye contact. _"You didn't think I forgot about you, did you, Cloud-chan? Don't worry, we'll have our little talk eventually. And, of course, Shou-chan's desperate act of trying to lie to me. Yup. Busted. Indeed, you've managed to carry out your plans very well, Shou-chan. I didn't expect you to join forces with the Vongola in this manner, but I knew you would become my enemy sooner or later. Because, Shou-chan, you have always looked at my actions and plans with disapproval since a long time ago. See? Well, whatever makes you happy. You'll soon see who's right and who's wrong. But, Shou-chan, you really like living on the edge, don't you? The Vongola 10th boss is still a greenhorn. Yet, you've cast your fate in with him….."_

My fists tightened, thinking of Tsuna, and the others. It almost felt selfish to forget about them. I barely jumped at Zhanna's hand on my shoulder. She moved her head in indication. I nodded, understanding we were moving. After returning Jian to his box, I set off after Zhanna, with Inna behind me. As we quickly moved through the trees, images of Byakuran passed, flickering, eerie, but his voice rang clear.

_"…it's all too easy for me to continue the battle without a break, and crush the vongola completely…having so much fun so far….it's about time we had a proper match…a ceremony to celebrate the new world."_

I was relieved when we reached the remains of the castle, seeing the rest of the Varia, along with Alik, Dayita and the twins waiting for us. Dayita smiled brightly and winked as we hit the ground, and the twin's waved ecstatically. Alik nodded in indication from his position next to Squalo, and I knew that a reassuring smile was behind the skull mask he wore. Unfortunately, me looking towards Alik caught Squalo's attention. I was almost grateful when Byakuran began talking about the real funeral wreaths, for it took Squalo's glare off of me.

_"….Of course, they are beautiful stones of rank A too, but the 7^3 are a lot more special than that…"_

"Told you," Dayita hummed, indicating her head towards Squalo, who scowled in response.

"That would have been a lot more fucking useful earlier," he snarled at her. Dayita huffed and shrugged in response.

_"…I've actually assembled another group in secret. I thought that if you met them directly, Shou-chan, the excitement would be too much for you, but there's no need to hide them any longer. Let me introduce you to them,"_ Byakuran continued as pictures were projected behind him. _"They are the true Millefiore Family's six guardians. The real Six Funeral Wreaths. Yeap. They are the real ones chosen by me for the new world.…"_

"So that's who we're really fighting," Bel noted as I came to stand by his side.

"Typical," Zhanna spat "He's been hiding his big guns like a fucking coward."

"Coward or not, he has the upper hand now," Squalo gruffly reminded them.

_ "…just choosing someone strong is useless, because the key points of the rings power is a stronger 'resolution'. Because of that, I did not just search within the mafias, I looked all over the world for strong people with 'resolution' surpassing normal people. Plus, it is those that will turn their 'resolution' in 'loyalty' towards me. The world is so big, thanks to that, I met them. For example, him,"_ Byakuran gestured as the images behind his shifted until it showed a picture of the man with red hair, and then a peaceful landscape. _"As you people see, his hometown loves the nature that is so attractive and I told him 'can you let me see your resolution?'"_ The image flickered once more to show that same landscape completely ravaged by volcanoes and lava, destroying the once peaceful scene.

_"He gave up his hometown for me. It's so scary, this is just something not long ago. I didn't think that just showing his loyalty, he would destroy his village and the villagers that brought him up."_ The screen switched once more, showing the same man from before casually bathing in a pool of lava. Bel whistled from beside me.

"These guys are on a whole other level, I'm assuming," Alik noted with slight amusement in his voice. My stomach twisted, and I looked away, pale. Fran put a reassuring hand on my shoulder, and stood closer to me.

_"Hehehe, now you guys understand the unique powers of the Six Funeral Wreaths. Besides this, they had 5000 subordinates. Because there isn't any so we made it… Ah- it's becoming even more interesting! Last time I was always playing with Shou-chan... do you still remember the game named 'Choice'? I am planning to make it real. Details will be informed 10 days later. I won't be moving during that, so rest properly. Oh, I really want to talk to you more but you all can't escape. The Melone base you are located is about to disappear. To be accurate, it's because of the super ring transmission system is moving. Nope. It only works with the object with such frame because it needs lots of time and powers, so a lifetime might not even see it once. So, see you in ten days later."_

The image of Byakuran collapsed, causing the entire group to relax, if only a bit. It seemed as if the message had stirred us all. Squalo turned slightly, putting hand to his ear.

"Patch me through to those brats now!" He said into his com, presumably talking to Ipin. "I don't give a fuck, just do it!" There was a moment, and then Squalo began his message loudly, much to the irritation of the entire group. "Voooi! It's fine, just let me through, damn it! You little bastards! Are you still alive!? Listen up! At this time, we, as the Vongola, are together in this!" My eyes wandered over to Xanxus, looking very much like he had just woken up from a nap. I paled as his eye twitched and his hand reached for a large piece of rubble placed conveniently by his chair. "So as for you little brats-" Squalo whipped around, holding his head, fuming and glaring at his boss.

"You asshole!" Lussaria moved in quickly to subdue the captain. The twins, who had recently been preoccupied gushing over Lussaria's hair, were now giggling in amusement. They were silenced with a look from Inna, who was now listening intently to Xanxus as he spoke through a communicator.

"Sawada Tsunayohi… have you become a little less immature yet? Show me that the Vongola in ten days time… will be the strongest!" With one motion, Xanxus crushed the device, sending Squalo into more of a fury.

"Squalo, calm down!"

"Let go!" Squalo yelled at Lussaria, "I wasn't done yet!"

"Ah, ah… he broke the wireless already," Fran noted.

"Squalo! Please calm down, I said!" Lussaria cried, struggling as he held Squalo back with both arms. "Cloud! Help me!" I glanced up from staring at Levi, who was laying on the ground, twitching, to give Lussaria a blank stare.

"I believe that I actually benefit from you holding him back at this point in time," I admitted, scratching my chin and looking away slightly. Bel tilted his head by my side.

"Hm? Why?"

"Don't you fucking think I forgot about you just because the shitty boss cut the line! I haven't forgotten how you disobeyed orders brat!"

"That's why," I pointed, leaning back slightly from Squalo's intense glare that was now directed at me. Bel frowned and looked down at me. I looked back up at him with a raised eyebrow, noting his irritation.

"You disobeyed orders?"

"….yes?" I started, a bit hesitantly. I continued my explanation, feelings a few intense gazes on me. "I kind of… maybe, ran off on my own to get Siel away from the base?"

"You did what?" Lussaria gasped, releasing Squalo promptly in order to hold the sides of his face. The sudden release sent Squalo stumbling forward, before he gracefully stabled himself. He glanced between Xanxus and me with growing irritation, deciding which one of us deserved his fury more at this moment. I paled as his eyes landed on me and narrowed. My saviors, however, came in a surprising form.

"Cloud! Cloud! Cloud!" Arms wrapped round me from both sides, and I was crushed in between the twins, who I now noticed to be slightly taller than me in their ten-years-later forms. They leaned away only to lock arms and continue to bounce in circles around me, blocking a very pissed off looking Squalo from me. I avoided eye contact with him by watching the twins.

"We got to get back to the base!" One chanted.

"Yeah! Right away!" The other agreed. I put one hand on each of their shoulders, steadying them in their trek. I laughed lightly after noticing Squalo huffing and backing off for now, turning to talk to Alik instead as they began walking. I also noticed Bel's sour mood as he followed the commander, but opted to ignore it for now.

"And why is that, exactly?" I asked as the twins wrapped an arm around my neck respectively and began walking with me as the group moved.

"Isn't it obvious, Cloud?" Shura asked in a teasing manner.

"Now that we're older and stronger," the other continued, both heads leaning in. I could practically feel the grins under their masks as they said their next line together.

"We totally have to fight you!"

* * *

><p>The two reacted to each other much in the manner of wild animals, and if one were to focus on the simplistic nature of their personalities, they were. They remained tensed, posed, ready to rip the bare throat of the other at any moment if provoked. And oh, were they so easily provoked. And yet, even between predators there was room for respect, and a magnitude of respect lay between Zhannah and Xanxus.<p>

Perhaps it was their similarities that drew the two bosses together, or their alignments in ideologies and thoughts. Xanxus regarded the Russian as one of the few bosses that didn't, in fact, pain him to meet with (this might, however, be due to the fact that their meetings always contained alcohol and Zhanna was one of the few bosses who had no problem keeping up with Xanxus in this aspect; she even threatened to surpass him at times). The recent boss of the Giegue viewed him in much the same matter, and couldn't help but recall the words of the one who had first picked up on their similarities.

Zhanna scowled, not enjoying the tract her mind had just taken. She teetered her drink, eyeing the contents of the glass disdainfully. She clicked her tongue and her eyes met Xanxus's lazy stare form across from her, where he had been placidly noting her change in mood.  
>"I'm just pissed off that I didn't kill the bastard myself," Xanxus drawled, continuing their conversation. Her eyes snapped up in response to his comment; angry, hot, and passionate as always, he noted.<p>

"You're pissed off? The fuck do you mean you're pissed off?" Zhanna started, bringing her feet harshly down from where they had been propped up on the desk. "I'm the one who hauled ass here to finish the fucker," Zhanna spat, slamming her glass down in frustration. "And I get here just to find out that the bitch already took him out. Bullshit! Fuck that!" She threw a hand up, and looked away, scowling. Xanxus let out a burst of harsh laughter, slamming his glass down as well.

"You're just pissed that she got to him first!"

"And you're not?" She shot back, sending him a glare. He shrugged, moving to refill his glass once more, emptying the bottle the two had been sharing.

"I could care less about a small fish like that piece of trash," Xanxus said, shifting the contents of his glass. "What I'm interested in now are those funeral wreaths, and the head piece of shit himself." Zhanna grunted, and leaned back in her seat once more, her earlier anger dwindling into a null frustration.

"You sure you guys can handle them without us?" She asked, almost challenged with a smirk on her face. Xanxus's eyes narrowed with a dangerous glint.

"This is the Vongola's fight," he reminded her. "Stay the fuck out of our way."

"So what? We're still on clean-up?" Zhanna growled. "Fuck that! I want some more action."

"You want to go then?" He challenged, a sneer on his face as well, his hand ready to bring his weapon out.

"As much as I'd love you tear you to pieces," Zhanna growled, her entire body coiled, alert, "it would be a fucking shame to destroy this shithole and about everyone else in it." Xanxus scoffed and his hand fell away from his guns.

"The Giegue will stay out of your way," Zhanna concluded after a moment, "and we'll continue the clean-up of the Millefiore's other forces while you eliminate their main. We might be able to take out those foot soldiers that bastard mentioned." Xanxus nodded in acknowledgement, taking a sip of his drink. Zhanna huffed and rose out her seat, making her way for the door.

"And you guys better not fuck it up," Zhanna stated before she exited completely. "I don't want to be cleaning up more shit than I have to."

* * *

><p>I watched idly as the twins bounced in excitement in front of me as we stood across from each other.<p>

"We're gonna fight Clow-oud! We're gonna fight Clow-oud!" The chanted, holding each other's arms and bouncing in a circle.

"They sure are excited," Ipin noted from the side of the room. Alik laughed beside her.

"Yep," he agreed, leaning against a wall and twirling one of his blades absentmindedly. "They're eager to show young Cloud their improved skills. They still had the chain last time you saw them, right?" He asked, addressing me.

"For their electric cage, yeah?" I recalled, frowning. "I remember that," I sighed. "It was annoying."

"The chains were so bulky!" One twin whined.

"And so out of style!" the other agreed. "But," they leaned forward, mischievous grins in place, "our new toys now-"

"-are SUPER cool!" The other finished. I shifted my weight, understanding that they were about to attack.

"Can't wait to see them," I commented blankly. A part of me was glad I was actually fighting, and a part of me was glad that I couldn't allow myself to hold back. And then, there was a small part that recognized this excitement I was forming for battle, for violence, and that part of me was worried, scared. I silenced that part as the twin's forms flashed, and I leaned back on one arm, easily dodging a kick from one.

Swinging myself around, I caught the other with a kick in the neck, sending them to the floor before I jumped over the former's lunge. My eyes narrowed when they rolled together and clasped hands, seeing glints in the space between them when the twins separated once more. Years of knowing Bel had me an expert at picking out wires. I ducked once more as the twins ran around me, knowingly going under the wire they held between them. In that second, I unclipped a large knife attached to my leg, and swung it upwards.

My eyes widened as the knife did nothing to cut through the wire, giving the twin's time to wrap one arm and jerk it backwards. Catching myself before I hit the ground. I looked over, only to throw my knife between the twins, forcing them to retract from each other. Having enough experience from their electric cage while training, I knew them touching was never good. I could only assume that this wire was the chain's replacement, along with the fact that it was coated with lightening flames, making it impossible to cut with a regular weapon.

I scowled, noticing them circling me again, hoping to wrap my upper half in the wires, restricting my movements. In that same moment, I saw one throw a large weapon at me, causing me to bridge back. Realizing they were going to take this chance to try to wrap my legs as well, I lifted myself on my arms solely, clicking my tongue in annoyance when the wire wrapped around both my arms, forcing them together.

"Alright," I grumbled, deciding I had gathered enough information for now, "I'm done with this." Switching the advantage, I spun myself and brought my leg down on the wire, throwing the twins off. They caught themselves in a roll, regaining balance quickly, but not before I could throw them towards myself, by yanking the wire wrapped around my arms. Taking one down with a kick, nulling their effort to clasp hands again, I fell on my side to grab the other with my legs, throwing them with their twin. I jammed one foot on one's elbow, and pressed my elbow into the other's back that I was sitting on.

"Oh, fuck no," I said, digging my heel and pressing my other foot on their back, "I am not getting fried today, no thank you."

"That was great, jiě jie!" Ipin called from the side. Alik laughed good naturedly, finding the position I put his children in to be humorous.

"That's not fair, Cloud!" the one beneath me whined.

"Yeah, you're heavier than us!"

"And you knew about our electric cage!"

"It wasn't that hard to guess what the wire was for," I muttered, one again testing the strength of my bonds, not liking the slightly awkward position my arms were in, stuck out in front of me.

"You're just lucky we didn't use the cutting wire," the twin beneath me said, sticking their tongue out at me.

"Cutting wire?" I asked, paling slightly, not liking my arms bound by this wire even more now.

"They can also cut with their wire," Alik explained, walking over to us. "The wire comes from a small, lightweight mechanism that fits beneath their clothing and comes out through their gloves. Only one of them has to wear the wire, and when they touch hands with the other, the wire attaches to the glove. They use the wires in three ways; bounding, which you have experienced," he stopped looking at me with amusement, "but that didn't stop you much, did it?"

"You said there were two other ways," I prompted as I got off the twins, deciding it safe to do so. They released the wire from their gloves, unlatching themselves from me.

"Cutting," Alike continued, "and then, naturally, to generate their electric cage. They picked up the cutting method from your prince friend."

"He was so cool!" Shura gushed, holding their face.

"And there was so much blood everywhere," Sasha sighed dreamily, holding their face as well.

"I don't doubt it," I noted, frowning when the wire still wasn't coming off. "So the wires are attuned to lightening flames?"

"Yep!" The twins said together, my question snapping them out of gushing over Bel.

"Verde?"

"Varick," Alike corrected. "I don't believe you've come across him yet."

"He's Dayita's brother," Ipin supplied.

"One of the greatest geniuses of his generation," Alik said. "Surpasses his father even. Although, when you do meet him, Cloud," Alik began, scratching the back of his head, "be careful, okay?"

"Hm?" I tilted my head, confused by Alik's sudden mood change. "Why be careful?"

"Well, especially around people like you," I raised an eyebrow at his phrasing, but remained quiet, "he gets little…" he struggled for the word, but another voice cut in before he could continued.

"He acts like a fucking lunatic, that's what," Zhanna growled, entering the room. "That whole family is full of bullshit." The twins giggled at her reaction.

"Zhanna hates them," they told me. "Both brother and sister."

"I could've guess that," I told them tiredly, then held my arms up. "Any one mind getting this? Preferably someone with lightning flames?" Zhanna laughed.

"So they got you, did they?" she teased, bring her knife out and twirling it, flames sparking to life on the blade. "But you don't look charred. Good job on keeping those little shits apart. That's the most annoying thing about them when they fight," she complained, throwing the knife after I held my arms up. The knife flew through the space between my head and elbows, nicking the wire as it did. That nick, however, was all the wires needed to snap apart, releasing my arms.

"Thanks," I allowed, then moved back to retrieve her knife for her.

"Inna's debriefing Squalo," she informed Alik.

"And you?" he asked as I walked back.

"Had a nice little chat with Xanxus," she said with a shrug. "We only staying a couple more days, then we're moving out to continue the wipe out."

"I'll go find Inna then," Alik said, throwing his hand behind his head. "Nice to know that you can still handle yourself, Cloud," he nodded at me with a grin. I laughed as he headed out.

"Wouldn't be able to without such a great teacher," I said with a wink.

"The fact that you trained with them," Ipin said after he left, "is amazing, jiě jie. And when you're so young too!"

"You're not much older than me right now," I reminded her. She blushed having forgotten the fact. "And you're pretty amazing yourself, Ipin." Her blush darkened, causing almost her entire face to turn red.

"Oh!" The twin's shot up, a new idea popping into their heads. "Let's fight Ipin n-"

"No," I cut in quickly, sharply. "Nope," I restated, in a lighter tone, surprised by my own protectiveness. "You are not," I pointed at the twins with Zhanna's knife, "fighting Ipin." The twin's pouted as I handed Zhanna her knife back.

"But we still want to fight!"

"Ten tears later, and you guys still act the same," I sighed as Ipin laugh nervously. I glanced over, only to see Zhanna giving me a hard stare. I stared back, having difficulty discerning it.

"How old are you?" she asked after a bit.

"14?" I tried, confused by her question.

"Ah," she said, nodding. "You don't know yet then."

"I don't know what?" I repeated, titling my head. "Oi, Zhanna!" I called as she began walking away. I stepped forward only to be glomped by the twins.

"Cloud, don't go yet!"

"We still want to fight!" Zhanna held up a hand as a lazy goodbye.

"You'll find out eventually, kid," she called without turning around. "Besides," she continued, her hand falling to scratch the back of her head.

"I need to talk to a man about a lighter."

* * *

><p>"I need a smoke," Zhanna told him, walking into the room. "I have a pack if you have a lighter." Bel stared back at her, unamused. He looked away, at the other wall.<p>

"You know I don't-"

"Lighter," she motioned, holding her hand out. "Now." Bel clicked his tongue, but none the less reached into his pocket and tossed the lighter into her hand. She caught it, and brought two cigarettes out of the carton in her pocket. After lighting her own and sticking it in her mouth, she handed the other to Bel, who took it and the lighter. Zhanna let out a breath of smoke as he lit his cigarette. "You've gone soft."

"What makes you say that?" He responded, not even bothering to look over at her. She streamed smoke out of her nostrils, and neglected the question.

"You couldn't stop for her, could you?"

"She wasn't around to bug me about anymore," he shrugged, reaching over to tap his ashes into the decorative bowl on the coffee table.

"She's persistent, I'll give her that," Zhanna admitted, sitting roughly down on the other side of the couch.

"Where is she now?" Bel asked with dull curiosity.

"Probably getting chewed out by the shark bastard," Zhanna guessed, leaning back and blowing smoke at the ceiling. "Or, still avoiding getting chewed out by him by sparring with the twins." Bel clicked his tongue, once again reminded of her actions.

"She's an idiot."

"True," Zhanna admitted, grinning, "but, she can handle more than you guys think," Zhanna informed him gruffly.

"Not Siel," Bel sneered.

"Don't fucking act like you know that," Zhanna snapped at him. "You don't know a damn thing."

"I knew her better than you," he pointed out, looking away in distaste.

"Well whoop-dee-fucking-doo," Zhanna said, motioning with her hand. "You need a fucking medal or something? We all knew her in different ways. Doesn't matter how long you knew her, or how 'close' you thought you were. She doesn't care about that anyway," she said with annoyance. "Hell, she would risk her life for a stranger."

"You have a point to this?" Bel drawled, becoming annoyed as well.

"I watched her fighting with the twins," Zhanna began. "It was interesting, really. It was like she was determining whether to really hold back or not. She played with them," she stated, catching Bel's attention. "She tested them, determining what they were doing and judging their weapons, even if she didn't realize it."

"I don't like repeating myself," Bel reminded her. She clicked her tongue at his impatience.

"You can't go easy on her," Zhanna said bluntly. "Even in training, to get her to take it seriously, you've got to come at her seriously. Put her own life at risk. You guys don't do that."

"Please," Bel scoffed, "she couldn't take us at o-"

"How do you know?" Zhanna countered. "You haven't seen her fight, not like I have." Bel opened his mouth to retaliate, but Zhanna continued before he could. "This one's different than the one that died. Right now, at this age, she still has the potential to be a great assassin, a natural fighter. The one we're used to lost that," her eyes narrowed as she looked at Bel. "That's what's holding you guys back. You all see her as the same; you don't see her to the full potential she can be. You don't use that full potential. You protect her, because you still compare her to the one you knew." A moment of silence enveloped between them. Zhanna looked away from Bel, not being able to or not caring enough to distinguish his mood.

"Whatever made her lose hope," Zhanna said, pushing herself up and putting her cigarette into the tray, rubbing out the ashes, "what made her dull, what made her _weak_," she spat out the word and looked back at Bel one more time before she left.

"I'm not going to let that happen to this one."

* * *

><p>I peaked around the corner pensively, still on high alert from the spar with the twins. I had managed to tire them out enough to where they didn't want to continue fighting me, but with that, I lost my main excuse to avoid Squalo. With my adrenaline still pumping, my sense still teeming, and weapons at ready in my various spots, I was sure I would notice someone come up behind me. However, I was gravely mistaken in that assumption, and almost jumped to the fucking ceiling when a gruff voice sounded right behind me.<p>

"What are you doing?" My entire body went frigid, but I manged to determine who was behind me before I drew my weapon. Good thing too, I thought nervously. I didn't think Xanxus would take too well to me pointing a blade at him. Well, either that, or he would find it amusing. You could never know for sure with him.

He raised an eyebrow at me. I blinked, realizing I didn't answer his question. He huffed (more of a grumble actually) and leaned against the wall.

"Why the fuck didn't you follow orders?" The question threw me, coming from the mouth of the last person I expected to reprimand me. I opened my mouth, then closed it again. Xanxus remained placid as I gathered my thoughts.

"I didn't want anyone else to get hurt because of me." His eyes flashed.

"You didn't think I could han-"

"The others," I corrected him, almost sharply. His eyes narrowed, but I understood I was allowed to continue. "The other subordinates- your subordinates that were with me," I explained, thinking back to the confrontation, "were injured, very badly injured from Siel's box weapon. I knew I could heal myself, but I couldn't get to them. I couldn't have them dying because of me, not when I had the chance to run. Not when I had the chance to save them," I finished strongly, looking Xanxus straight in the eye.

"So you disobeyed direct orders and ran the opposite way?" My features remained unchanging, as did his voice, making it hard to distinguish his thoughts.

"Yes." He sighed, and looked down.

"If that bitch hadn't stepped in," he said looking back over to me callously, "would you have won?" I blinked, not having thought of that scenario.

"Honestly...?" I tried, losing my earlier bravado. "I don't know? I wouldn't have let myself get caught so easily, that's for fucking sure," I sighed, looking to the side and rubbing the back of my head. "I think..." I concluded, tilting my head. "That I could've handled myself. As long as there're people I'm fighting for, I can't lose, right?" I asked, looking back up at Xanxus. He returned my awkward smile with a lazy expression. With a click of tongue, he pushed off the wall and walked past me, making me go rigid again when he ruffled my hair as he did.

"Just don't disobey orders again, brat," he drawled as he walked up the hallway. I stared as he went, still slightly unnerved from the contact.

"... no promises."

* * *

><p>"Thanks," I said tiredly, catching the apple Zhanna tossed to me as she entered the room.<p>

"You could've gotten it yourself," she huffed, falling heavily down on the couch beside me. "Didn't have to beg me for it."

"I could have," I agreed after taking a bite, "but that would out me at risk."

"Of getting a fucking earful-"

"By Squalo," I interrupted her. "By _Squalo_," I repeated for emphasis. "We already get an earful when just talking to him casually. Just think of what would happen," I pushed myself off the couch, making my way towards one of the open doorways of the room, "if he were actually trying to scold me. No," I corrected, turning to fully face her on the couch, "not scold. He's going to tear me apart. So, for now, I'm getting all the help I can; got the twin's to steal me food, earned some pity from Lussaria to hide me a few times and sleep in his room, and even got Fran and Yita to cover me with illusions. The whole sha-bang," I finished proudly, taking another bite of my apple. She gave me a disbelieving look. I sighed sadly, watching as she reached in her pocket. I frowned as she pulled out a carton of cigarettes.

"Ah," I breathed out slightly. "I forgot you smoked." I tilted my head back as she rolled her eyes.

"Not without a lighter, I don't," she corrected, a slight tone of amusement in her voice, as if sharing an inside joke with herself. "You can't avoid him forever, brat," Zhanna reminded me, changing the subject.

"I don't know," I argued back, shrugging. "I've managed out maneuver him all day yesterday, so who's to say today won't be different."

"I don't know," Zhanna said lightly, teasing, leaning her head on the back of the couch with an unlit cigarette hanging out of her mouth. "Maybe the guy behind you?" I hummed slightly, blinking at her. Her eyes lit up in amusement, the only warning I had to grab the sides of the door, forcing me to drop my breakfast.

"You think this is fucking game, you little shit!" Squalo yelled as he pulled at my waist, straining my grip on the doorway.

"If it is, then you suck at it," I called back, deciding I was in enough trouble all ready, and what the hell, I might as well goad him a bit. I squeaked, regretting my words as he tugged harder, prying me from the doorway. "Wait! Squalo, no! I was kidding, I kid!" I yelled as I squirmed in his grip. He grumbled and roughly slung me other his shoulder, yet again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"If you were really fucking sorry," He growled, becoming even more irritated as I continued to squirm on his shoulder, "then you would have followed the fucking orders I gave you!"

"Zhanna help!" I called out pitifully. My face fell as she saluted lazily, smiling broadly as I was carted off.

"Zhanna that's not help!"

* * *

><p>"What's wrong with you?" The question threw Dino, causing him to stare blankly at the younger Hibari Kyoya in front of him. The prefect frowned, annoyed by the man's lack of response. He raised his tonfa, but lowered it as Dino laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head.<p>

"Wha-what are you talking about, Kyoya? I'm perfectly fi-"

"Liar," the teen spat, his eyes narrowing. He looked around the school roof once more, his eyes scanning over the two men standing to the side. His eyes widened ever so slightly, realizing what was missing almost immediately.

"Where's kumo?" He asked, thinking back to a couple weeks ago, where the girl had disappeared in front of him and his frustration when he couldn't find her anywhere in Namimori. Dino's face fell and the air around him become gloomier, irritating Hibari.

"Hey, Kyoya," Dino said, not even bothering to smile anymore. "Let's just get back to training, okay?" Hibaria clicked his tongue and raised his tonfas once more. Although he was perfectly content with fighting instead of talking (in fact, he almost always preferred it) this training almost left a bad taste in the prefect's mouth.

This older Dino was different, Hibari noted with distaste. He was weak, he decided, and he was annoyed by this version of Dino. But, from that small conversation, he decided something else.

This Dino was weak, and kumo was to blame. And since she was to blame, he would punish her accordingly the next time he saw her. He would make sure of it.

* * *

><p>I shivered and hugged myself, feeling a very bad vibe. Although, strangely enough, this vibe didn't seem to come from the fact that an angry Squalo was standing in front of me, glaring. No, that was a different vibe, a more frightful, intermediate vibe that seemed to take importance at the moment.<p>

"Vooi! Don't you space off brat! What the fuck were you thinking?" He started, causing me to lean back from the intensity of his rage. "You can't just fucking run off like that, especially since I gave you orders not to! The boss was right there next to you and you run the opposite way? How much a fucking idiot can you be you shitty br-" We froze as a vibrating sound cut him off. He growled and roughly pulled a phone out of his pocket, grumbling something along the lines of 'this better be important or I'm going to be fucking pissed'.

"Voi! What the hell do you want?" He answered, turning slightly from me. I sat there quietly, not even bothering eyeing the door, knowing I'd be dead if I tried anything. I tensed again when Squalo began yelling into the phone.

"VOOOI! WHAT THE FUCKING BRONCO, I JUST GOT YOUR SISTER TO CHEW HER THE FUCK OUT, AND THEN YOU INTERRUPT ME!?" I perked up at the mention of Dino, then became dejected once more. "Why the fuck does it concern you, huh?! Hm? What about the baseball brat?" I looked off once more, preparing myself, accurately guessing what Squalo was being told. I plugged my ears, seeing the change in Squalo's eyes before he started yelling again.

"….. HE LOST!? THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN HE LOST?" I peeked my eyes open, to see Squalo the maddest I've ever seen him. "Fuck that! I'm heading over there!" He hung up the phone quickly, fuming. "Listen, brat," He told me harshly, "I'm leaving to beat the shit out of the baseball brat, so I won't be around for a while. Don't be fucking idiot again and stay by the communication room in case I need to contact you. Don't ignore my orders again, brat," he leaned in, glaring. I nodded quickly. He clicked his tongue left the room in a rush. For a bit, I simply sat there, taking in what happened. Then, suddenly, I clasped my hands together, closed my eyes and bowed my head, much in the manner of praying.

"Thank you, Yamamoto," I muttered gratefully. "Although you may not survive because Squalo's really, _really_, pissed off, I want you to know that your sacrifice was appreciated. Thanks." I began to lift my head, but then added.

"Oh, and try not to die by Squalo's hand. That would be cool of you."

* * *

><p>"Ah, Dino-san," Tsuna called, picking up his pace before Dino left the room.<p>

"Hm?" Tsuna almost cringed as Dino smiled at him, his intuition telling him is was forced. Yamamoto stopped in front of Dino as well, already having a feeling where this was going. It had been obvious since he had arrived, that this wasn't the cheery, optimistic Dino they were used to. Sure, the don had retained his clumsiness and mostly bright attitude, but there was a certain emptiness to it, a certain force behind it that was anything but genuine. Tsuna had had his suspicions for a while, building up in the back of his head, and he assumed Yamamoto was thinking among the same lines. The two had not doubt that Dino's emptiness had everything to do with his recently deceased sister. And although they could not blame him for his depression and confusion with the sudden appearance of his dead sister's past self, an explanation would always be resourceful.

"A-are…" Tsuna hesitated before he asked, but after a reassuring look from Yamamoto, he continued. "Dino-san, are you alright?"

"What do you mean, Tsuna?" Dino chuckled, a bit nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Of course I-"

"It's about Cloud, isn't it?" Tsuna said suddenly, cutting him off. Dino tensed, then dropped his arm, letting out a soft sigh.

"You kids are perceptive, I'll give you that," Dino muttered, thinking back to how Kyoya picked up on his mood as well. "That, or I really suck at hiding it."

"Have you seen her?" Yamamoto stepped in suddenly, a serious look on his face. "That guy, Byakuran," Yamamoto continued, "he mentioned her in this message. Is he after her again?"

"She's-the Cloud from our timeline," Tsuna corrected quickly, "She's okay, right?"

"She's with the Varia right now," Dino answered with a frown, "So, as long as she stays with them, she should be safe."

"Did… did you talk to her?" Tsuna asked after a moment of relief between him and Yamamoto. "Are you guys okay?" Dino sighed, and rubbed the back of his head.

"Look, things between us… this Cloud that's here now…" Dino grumbled, attempting to find a way to explain it to them. "…. She's not my Cloud," he gathered after a bit, confusing the two boys. "She's not the one who…." He sighed again, and looked away, not having to finish the sentence.

"Look, Tsuna," he turned to the young don, almost wincing when he met his earnest eyes. "It's not something I'd like to think about, and it's not something you guys need to be thinking about right now either with your training. Just… just, please, focus on your training for now," Dino concluded, sounding as if he were pleading more than anything before continuing on his way out. The two watched as he left, and then shared a sad look.

"Poor Dino-san," Tsuna breathed out, thinking of the distress the older don must be going through. Yamamoto shook his head, instead dwelling on the younger sibling, know exactly how she reacted to this. Yamamoto sighed, and revised Tsuna's words.

"Poor Cloud."

* * *

><p>"Everyone's leaving now," I sighed, standing in front of the five Russians, "It's sad. And I'm just expected to stay here."<p>

"Until you're needed," Zhanna shrugged, her arms behind her head. Alike laughed and reached forward to ruffle my hair. I scrunched my nose and leaned back.

"Don't get too down," he chided.

_'I'm sure you'll help soon enough,_' Inna typed, giving me a reassuring smile as well. The twins rushed forward to hug me, squishing me from both sides.

"We'll miss you, Cloud!" they both cried.

"We might see each other again before I go back," I hopefully, gently urging them to release me. "And before you guys go, I just wanted to say thanks." Alik tilted his head.

"What for?"

"For treating me normally," I admitted, shrugging. "For not treating me like I'm dead." Zhanna scoffed and poked me in the forehead.

"Dead? You look pretty alive to me, brat," she chastised. I swatted her hand away.

"You know what I mean," I pouted. She shrugged, sporting a large grin.

"Whatever. We'll take the thanks anyway."

"Keep up your fighting, Cloud," Alik called. "You're already blossoming into a beautiful assassin." I almost blushed at the compliment, unsure of it.

"See ya, little horse," Zhanna lazily saluted. "Don't you dare fucking die or do anything too stupid."

"No promises," I said laughing, waving slightly as they left.

"No promises…" I repeated again quieter, sad to see them go.

* * *

><p>"This is our side of the base," Kusakabe explained as they walked through the hallways. "Your future self was staying here before you came." Hibari glanced around the halls with approval, noting his own sense of style. Kusakabe was forced to stop suddenly behind him as the teen slid a door open and entered.<p>

The older man was happy to let him wander, since it was _his_, after all, and Kusakabe had finally managed to convince Hibari to come to the base to rest after Dino had to break to contact someone.

"Ah, this was your office of sorts," he said as he entered the room. "If you are interested, there should be information regarding box weapons in the drawers of-"

"That doesn't interest me," Hibari harshly interrupted, looking around the room blankly. His eyes narrowed, and he moved forward, spying an object of interest on the shelf behind the desk. Hibari noted the broken glass of the picture, the cracks webbing across the faces of the two in the photo. He picked up the broken frame, causing pieces of glass to fall out. He frowned, and easily pulled the full picture out of the broken frame in order to get a better look. Kusakabe remained quiet behind him, recognizing the picture.

Hibari distinguished himself easily enough (looking only to be four or so years older than he was now), and by the green eyes of the woman, he could accurately guess the identity of the other. His older self-looked vaguely annoyed, yet somewhat amused, his focus entirely on the woman beside him who, much to Hibari's irritation, had her arm around his shoulders, pulling him in for the picture. The woman, who was obviously holding the camera herself and taking the picture, had her eyes focused on the camera and seemed to be caught in mid laugh. Hibari placed the picture on the desk, and turned to the other occupant of the room.

"She's dead in this future." It wasn't a question. Kusakabe nodded in confirmation, frowning.

"Yes."

"How?" Hibari's sharp eyes met Kusakabe's. "How did she die?"

"It-it was during a negotiation with Byakuran," the man quickly spit out, once he comprehended the question. "She... she killed herself." The prefect's eyes narrowed at this new information. Kusakabe expected the teen to continue this interrogation, but was surprised when he turned his head to look back at the picture.

It was weak, he thought, that she died that way. Having to resort to taking her own life. Weak, and unnecessary, he added. His gaze turned to a glare, his focus still on the picture. She looked happy there.

And it made him angry.

* * *

><p>"What are you doing in here?" I looked up to see Bel walking into the room. Putting down my notebook, I shifted myself so that I was no longer laying across the couch, giving him room to sit.<p>

"Squalo told me he might contact us," I said as Bel causally sat down next to me, throwing his arms to rest on the back of the couch, "so I've been hanging out in here recently."

"Ah," Bel acknowledged.

"But… I'm glad you walked in," I started, deciding now was a good time to talk about this. "I've been meaning to ask you something." Bel titled his head, and I knew he was looking at me to continue.

"When did you first realize you liked killing?" The question threw him, I noted, and he hesitated before he answered.

"Honestly? I don't really remember," he started, leaning his head back to look at the ceiling. "My brother and I were always violent. You know that." I nodded in confirmation. "And then I killed my entire family, which was pretty fun," he admitted with a grin. "Killing was never an issue for me," he continued with a shrug and a snicker. "Ushisshi, I guess the prince was simply born to kill." His smile dropped at my expression. "Why the sudden interest?" I looked down, bringing my knees up to wrap my arms around.

"….I like fighting," I admitted. "At least, I think I do. I like the rush it brings, I like the adrenaline, I just… like fighting. But, I don't like hurting others," I said, looking up. "When I'm training I love the feeling I get from fighting Zhanna and Alik and Inna, and even the twins, but the moment that's over, the moment that rush is gone and I've realized that I've hurt someone, I feel guilty." I took a breath and then turned to look at Bel.

"Alik told me to suppress my personality when I fight, and I do. I push everything back for those moments, but sometimes, when I do, I feel like another personality surfaces. I was just wondering," I said, looking away from him again, "that if I do come to terms with liking to fight, which I think I am," I added not finding that thought too concerning, "then will I like to kill next?"

"No," Bel corrected me, his voice almost distant. "You're never going to like to kill, princess." I looked over at him, frowning. "That's not you. You may like to fight, but that's not for your sake. You fight for others," he continued, as if recalling something else. "You have a reason to fight, and that's what pushes you. It's annoying, really," he said scrunching his nose. "You barely have any regard for yourself." There was a moment, then I laughed lightly, his words giving me relief.

"So I've been told… multiple times, actually," I admitted, leaning back on the couch. "Thanks, Bel," I said softly. He hummed lightly.

"Of course, princess," he said, grinning widely.

"Am I interrupting something?" That grin turned to a scowl as Dayita sauntered in. I sighed, Bel's earlier casual attitude now turning malicious.

"Hey," I called as the two stared each other down. "Can we n-"

"VOOOOOIIII! BRAT!" We all winced, and glanced at the screen in irritation. "Good! You're here," Squalo said gruffly, his eyes scanning over us. "This is important, so you two listen up as well," he demanded, referring to Bel and Dayita.

"That bastard Byakuran contacted us here, and gave them details about that shitty game their doing in a few days."

"Are we participating in it?" Bel asked. "If not, then it doesn't concern us."

"Voi! Let me fucking finish," Squalo snapped. "That bastard said that everyone that came from the past had to be there or they'll be disqualified." Bel's composure stiffened and the air in the room turned cold.

"Everyone from the past, including Cloud."

"There's no way we're letting her go," Bel stated, crossing his arms with a frown.

"That's what I fucking said!" Squalo agreed on the other side of the screen.

"But they'll get disqualified if I don't go," I reaffirmed, earning an irritated look from bel. "Everyone from the past has to be there. I can't have them losing because of me!"

"Like fuck we'll let you go, brat!" Squalo snapped. I opened my mouth to retaliate, but stopped when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Dayita smiled at me, and stepped forward, her presence silencing the room. Even Squalo narrowed his eyes and leaned back, allowing her to speak.

"If Byakuran wants Cloud to be there, then leave it to me," Dayita said icily. "I'll make sure he sees what he wants."

"Regular illusions won't cut it," Squalo reminded her. "You can't just try to trick him like that."

"You forget," Dayita held up a finger, "I have more to pull from than just my illusions, which are _far_ from regular." The tranquility of her smile almost scared me and her reassurance was alarming.

"Just give me a few days," she assured him, her eyes glinting, "and leave everything concerning our darling little Cloud to me."

* * *

><p>I assumed by now that people knew better than to wake me up in the middle of the night. I was already irritated, barely being able to get to sleep because I was worried I would be the reason Tsuna would be disqualified, and I have no idea what Dayita was planning when she left. Like usual, I was expected to remain with the Varia 'where I would be safe'. Even though my relationship with Bel seemed to be stable now and I was spending more time with him, I was still extremely worried about the others, especially after Squalo's message. With these circumstances and with my track record, I would have thought no one would have been stupid enough to wake me up. As he usually does, Fran proved me wrong.<p>

"The fuck, Fran?" I hissed, releasing him from under me. I rubbed my eyes irritably as he pushed himself up, rubbing his shoulder where I had thrown him. "What are you doing?"

"Nee-chan," He drawled, pouting. "That was mean. I was just waking you up."

"Normal people don't wake people up in the middle of the night, Fran, especially if those people are trained in hand-to-hand," I reminded him, giving him a half-glare, too tired to be fully mad at him.

"Since when have we been normal?" he shrugged. "And besides, we have to get going, or we'll be late." He threw my bag at me, already packed. I caught it with ease and looked back up at him, confused. "We're sneaking out," he told me bluntly.

"Sneaking out?" I parroted as I watched him go to the door. "Where are we going?" He looked back at me with a blank expression, as if he assumed I would know already.

"We're going to see stupid-pineapple-haired master, of course."

* * *

><p>"Hm?" Levi glanced around the room, but only saw Lussaria next to the fireplace, sipping a drink. "Where's everyone else? It's eerily quiet around here…"<p>

"Ah?" Lussaria looked over. "Well, Squalo is with the Vongola in Japan, Boss is taking a nap" Levi nodded, already knowing that, "but Fran went to visit some girl."

"A girl?" Levi repeated, trying imagine Fran with a woman.

"W.W, or something like that," Lussaria said lightly waving his hand, "I don't remember exactly."

"Where's the brat?" Levi continued. "She's supposed to stay with us, right?"

"Hm? Cloud?" Lussaria titled his head, thinking. "Haven't seen her. She's probably with Bel."

"Who's with me?" Bel asked, walking in behind Levi. Lussaria strained his neck, looking behind Bel, frowning when he didn't see Cloud.

"Huh? Cloud isn't with you?" Lussaria asked.

"I assumed she was with you," Bel stated simply, frowning. "Is she with Boss then?"

"I just checked up on him," Levi said. "She wasn't in there."

"Then she's with Fran," Bel concluded, jumping over the back of the couch to sit.

"Fran left," Lussaria repeated for Bel's sake. Bel tensed. There was a moment of silence.

"Then…" Levi started, almost nervously. "Where is she? Do you think she left?"

"There's no way she could leave the base without us knowing!" Lussaria argued. "Unless helped by an illu-" The sun guardian halted in his speech, and the occupants of the room came to a sudden realization. Bel sported a malicious grin and moved suddenly, storming out of the room. Lussaria and Levi shared a nervous glance, then quickly followed their storm guardian. Catching up to him, they found the prince in front what they knew to be the illusionist's room, glaring at a small note attached to the door.

_'Went to do a thing. Taking Nee-chan with me. See ya' –Fran_

"He didn't..." Lussaria breathed out in disbelief, a single bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face. Levi gulped from beside him, both the men stepping away from Bel's intense aura he was putting off.

"He did."

"He's dead," Bel seethed, stabbing a knife into the note, startling Levi and Lussaria. "That shitty frog is dead."

* * *

><p>"Achoo!"<p>

"You okay?" I looked over at Fran, who was now rubbing his nose, frowning. "The weather affecting you?" He shook his head.

"No. I'm fine; just a foreboding sense that someone wants to kill me. Normal stuff." I blinked at him lazily. He then continued. "You holding up, nee-chan?" He asked, changing the subject. "You look pretty blue to me." I huffed and pulled my hood down further, rolling my eyes.

"Please," I called out, continuing to trek through the snow beside the illusionist. "This is nothing compared to the terrain those guys put me through. Especially at this leisurely pace."

"Sorry if this isn't as extreme as you're used to, nee-chan," Fran drawled sarcastically. "If you want, you can run by yourself the rest of the way, since the house is just up there." I squinted through the snow and managed to pick out a dark shape at the top of a steep hill in front of us.

"No thanks," I shook my head, finding the hill a bit daunting, "I'll keep walking with you."

"I'm touched, nee-chan," Fran said, putting a hand over his heart without a drop of emotion on his face. "You want to stay with me. It must be love."

"Don't get emotional on me," I called back, holding a hand out to him as we made our way up, "I just chose you over a steep hill; not that hard of a choice." The rest of the trek was made in comfortable silence until we reached the stores leading up to the small cabin overlooking the vast mountain range.

"Ah, we made it without dying," Fran commented when we reached the stairs. "Hooray for us." I rolled my eyes and followed him up. "They should already be here, since I didn't meet up with them," Fran muttered when we reached the door. I remained quiet, noting the noise behind the door.

"Why the hell do you need so many clothes?"

"Don't touch anything! I have to look by best for Mukuro!"

"….It does seem a bit excessive," a quieter voice commented.

"What a great greeting," Fran commented as we entered. "We feel truly welcomed."

"Hm?" I walked in to find all three occupants of the room staring at me. "Hey! It's that chick!" Joshima Ken exclaimed, releasing the piece of clothing he had been arguing over. His eyes narrowed as he neared me. "She looks smaller…"

"That's because she's from the past, Ken," Chikusa reprimanded placidly from his position sitting on the only bed in the room.

"At least I won't be the only girl here anymore," M.M. said, smirking. "Maybe she has little fashion sense, unlike you morons. I swear," she complained, looking at me, "they're like animals."

"Who're you calling an animal!" ken barked at her angrily.

"You're only proving her point, Ken."

"Who's side are you on anyway, Kappa!?"

"Lively, aren't they," Fran commented, sighing. He then clapped his hands, calling everyone's attention. "Okay, everyone. Let's get focused," he called, raising a hand. The three looked at him with annoyance, but remained silent. "Now that we're all here we can start the plan," Fran continued blankly.

"Operation: save the stupid pineapple hair master is a go."

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: Monster<strong>

Zhanna had always been aware of the fact that her mother had never loved her. Too vile, she would say. Too vulgar, too rough. Too strong. And yet that was their family. Strong, robust, terrifying, the Giegue stood strong and proud. Her mother did not fit this image. She was delicate, womanly in the stereotypical way. Pretty, soft, and Zhanna never understood why her father married her. She was the perfect image of a house wife and the girl could not imagine why her father would want a women like that to bear his children. If it were an arranged marriage, she didn't care enough to look into it. Zhanna did not understand confinement, so the thought of politically being bound to another person evaded her. The children were strong, the ones her mother bared. Built in the image of their father. Her mother was unhappy, disgusted almost, by their training and upbringing. Monsters, she soon came to realize by the second child. They were trained to be monsters.

She distanced herself. She distanced herself from these monsters, her children, until there was barely a relationship between them at all. The word 'mother' did not bring the usual warm feelings to mind for the Giegue children. They did not see her as a mother, and she did not see them as her children. Zhanna, if this were even possible with the lack of affection shown to the children, was loved even less, hated even more by her mother. She was robust, she was vulgar, she was wild, and Zhanna fit the image of the monster her mother saw her perfectly. Perhaps this is why her mother became so utterly obsessed with the fifth child; the weak child, the small child, the child that was too sick to become a monster like the others.

The mother doted on the child as it barely grew, weak, fragile, always by her side. Zhanna's siblings ignored it, as if they already knew that something so weak couldn't last. But Zhanna was too young. Zhanna, being only four, just two years older than the fifth child, did not understand. She saw this weak thing, her younger sibling, and she hated it. It was loved by their mother, it was nurtured by their mother. Their mother had never done this to Zhanna. And Zhanna did not understand why. She was the 'monster', and that, to Zhanna, was familiarity.

There were many things Zhanna did not understand. She didn't understand the way her cousins looked at their mother, nor the way their mother looked at her husband, nor the strange, burning, acidic feeling in the pit of her stomach when she noticed these interactions. Nor did she understand why these small moments she witnessed made her angry, but she also didn't care when she took this anger out on her uncle, or when she completely destroyed his metal leg, forcing the development a stronger material. She didn't care much when she hurt others, because she didn't understand that they weren't strong enough to protect themselves, and it was there fault for being weak. She didn't understand why her mother was so distraught after the youngest sibling's death. She didn't understand when her own mother took her life out of grief, and she definitely didn't understand why nobody talked about it.

She understood the erasure of the fifth sibling. They were weak, and not relevant; something that the proud Giegue did not wish to claim. This was simple to Zhanna.

But She understood such few things. She understood that death was a part of her life, a large portion of it self-caused, by her taking other's lives. It was a part of who they were; the Giegue, the gravediggers. Meetings with death was common, and Zhanna had been on the verge many times. If someone died, they were too weak. The simplicity of the statement Zhanna understood wholly, and so why did none of her siblings, or even her father become uncomfortable when speaking of her mother's death? The young Zhanna saw no difference between taking one's life, and taking another's. They weighed the same on the scales in Zhanna's mind.

She understood that she was a monster; the strongest recollection of her mother. And perhaps this understanding came from her eagerness to agree with the statement. These monsters, her mother explained with vile after prompted with the simple question, are awful, and vulgar, and robust. They were strong. Zhanna enjoyed being strong, and the thought of being a monster became appealing to her. Or, that was what she convinced herself.

In her, youth, if she allowed herself to dwell on the subject, when not fighting, beating, running, anything but _not_ to think about it, just to continue violence, continue to destroy, because that's what monsters do, isn't it? And that's all she knows. If she allowed herself to think about it, perhaps she would realize the unpleasantness of the title, and the connotations that came along with it. Perhaps she would be reminded of the small want for her mother's love that was completely devoted to a dead child. But she would not think about this.

Finish the job. Complete the mission. Eliminate the target. Eventually, she learned that if she were a bit messier, and bit more aggressive, and spilled a bit more blood, tore a few more limbs, her father would smile. He would praise her ruthlessness and she would thrive off of that praise. With every scar from her recklessness, from every impossible mission she would survive, she would earn another smile form her father.

Early adulthood, he told her she had become a complete monster. And he was proud. And she thought about it. She questioned the definition of 'monster', and decided, that yes, she was a monster. But, not her mother's monster. Not even her father's. Zhanna's version, her mother's version, her father's version; these were all different takes on this one word that had continued to echo throughout Zhanna's life. She understood this, and disregarded this, not caring what other's definitions of her were.

Zhanna was her own monster. She was her own fear, which meant conquering herself. The fourth, youngest child of the Giegue had no qualms with this. She faced herself, and she won.

She is strong; she is a monster.

And she accepts the title proudly.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**Reminder that the poll is still up and ready fo yo votes~ The results are scaring me actualy, so there's that. **

Okay, so I have a friend who is very flexible, and can do the splits, and we were sitting in her living room the other day discussing a movie. Her mother walks by, and notes the way my friend is sitting, which is with her legs apart. Said mother scrunches her nose and says, "that's not a very ladylike way to sit." Said friend looks her mother straight in the eyes, lifts herself up, and does the the splits across the arm chair. Now tell me that isn't something Cloud would do.

So, hey! I'm back. I thought I could get a chapter out before I went to Girls State, but apparently, all my family and friends had other plans. Also, I am somehow now the scenic painter for an upcoming show at our arts center and I don't know how that happened? But, I am determined to try to get on a roll and get through as much of this as possible before I head off to the writer's conference. So, yeah.

I really like the dynamics between Zhanna and Xanxus that I didn't really notice before. Also, Bel and Zhanna react to each other strangely, and that's fun to play with as the author. There's a Reborn Colore page of Bel smoking, so, I took it as canon. That led to my connection between Zhanna and Bel and that scene kind of just happened? I could totally see Cloud starting out as passive aggressively disagreeing with both Zhanna and Bel smoking, but becoming more blunt as they continued.

I should also note that is took me a minute to compose myself after remembering that when future Dino introduces himself to Tsuna and co. to teach them about box weapons he walks in on his fuCKING HORSE BOX WEAPON, and I just kind of died laughing and it took about 5 or so minutes to compose myself. I mean, he just causally prances in. On a horse. No big deal. There's also a part in a chapter where Hibari said "Hey bitches" and I'm pretty sure that was an error in translation or something but I. Lost. It.

This chapter was... strange to write. It was mostly made up a small interactions I began playing with that fledged into full conversations and scenes. It was interesting writing it though. And when I started looking for a quote to go with this chapter, I found that one (which I have been waiting to use) and it summed up the feeling of the chapter perfectly and gave it it's name. I also added a little bit of Zhanna's backstory, because that's been sitting in my computer forever. I might make something similar for Dayita too, sometime. The picture Hibari was looking at also kind of has a story behind it that makes me happy to think about.

**Review Repsonses: **

**Pinkus-pyon:** Glad you liked the chapter! Make sure to go to my profile page and vote for Hibari! Thanks for the review!

**IIBlueFoxBlazinII: (Chapter 6)** All the Chinese curses (well, the long ones) come from Firefly (which is a show I seriously recommend watching). If you're interested, send me a PM and I can send you the link to the website I use to get them. They are hilarious. Thanks for the review!

**Rowan1025:** Thanks so much for the corrections! I'll be sure you look back at them when I do my next sweep through of previous chapters. Thanks for the reviews!

**Spicyrash:** Aw, thanks so much! I'm glad you like Cloud and her interactions. Golly, you're making me blush. Thanks for the review!

**Roserader:** Thanks for the love! It makes me so happy that you think it's fantastic. Thanks for the review!

**Khr junkie:** Aw, thanks! When do I like to update, huh? HAHAHAHAHAHAhahaha…. That's a very great question, which has a very shitty answer. Thanks for the review!

**Xenocanaan**: Oh, that cute. You don't think future!Cloud killed herself. Adorable. Thanks for the review.

**turtlehoffmann2251:** We can be chill waterbenders together. Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Random Citizen: (chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)** Thanks so much fro all the reviews and comments! They were a lot of fun to read.

**AnimeKpop7:** Thanks for the review and for answering the question. Air would be a total rad element to control, because it's literally EVERYWHERE. But, it's also one of the most terrifying and powerful ones. Glad you like Dayita too!

**Blue Rubix-Cube:** As for the elements question, I think earth might be a good one for you. Thanks for the review!

**New and Old:** Dude, the arcobaleno arc will be my favorite and I want to get to it so bad! Ahem. No spoilers or anything, but Cloud is a total badass in that arc. Oops. Spoilers. Thanks for the review!

**L's Cappuccino:** Dayita was scary then, and that was her just playing around with them. She didn't even need to use her hell rings. Dayita is _terrifying_. She's the kind of character I love most and the character I fear the most. And flying would be hella rad. Thanks for the review and for answering the question!

**Uniquemangalover:** Everyone has a crush on Dayita and Dayita has a crush on everyone (well, if they're her type). THANKS FOR ANSWERING THE QUESTION FELLOW WATERBENDER. AND THANKS FOR THE REVIEW.

**Angelacorus:** Aw, thanks so much! Be sure to vote for Yamamoto if you like him in the poll. He's a bit behind for the moment… thanks for the review!

**RaNDoem:** Dayita is amazing and beautiful and completely fucking terrifying. And that was just her playing around too. Glad you like her so much! Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** That's an interesting and relatable philosophy. My own philosophy falls along the lines of doing what you want as long as you don't affect others in a negative way. It's an independence thing in a way. As for whether or not I believe in souls I guess I don't? I've never really taken much thought to it, but then again, I'm not that much of a spiritual person. I'm an atheist, so I'm not religious, but if there were actually a god, I'd be chill with that. I respect others beliefs though, because religion is an amazing thing. If you devote yourself to someone else/a being, and want to serve that person/being, or better yourself for that person/being then that is an amazing thing, and you are a better person than me (as long as you're not hurting or negatively affecting others; that's where I draw the line). So, to get back to the point, I guess I don't believe in souls, but again, with what I said before, it would be chill if they do exist. Thanks for the review and for answering the question, along with your own question! I always like talking about things like this, so feel free to discuss with me anytime.

**Cheshirekadi:** Yeap! Voting is still going on! You can go to my profile and vote your little heart out for Bel (psssst, he's in the lead). I just love writing those two, too. Thanks for the love and the review!

**Klu's Child:** Hello, child. I'm just waiting for when Cloud can go all the way out, because right now, she's either holding herself back, or there's someone stopping her from fighting. And you want to know what Xanxus was doing while Dayita was battling Siel (Cloud kind of hints this in the chapter, but it's never flat out addressed): Sleeping. He was sleeping. And nah, Byakuran's main is still the Vongola. He views Cloud as more of a prize on the side (this is largely due to his confidence that he will completely crush the vongola). Really, he is interested in Cloud out of curiosity, and that she is a large blind spot in his knowledge of the future (this comes up later, don't worry). Thanks for the review and for answering the question!

**Yuka Tsukino:** Thanks so much for my unicorn box weapon and the added Pegasus. I will love them forever. Thanks so much for the love and the review!

**Guest Reviews:**

**Halie:** Thanks so much, and thanks for the review!

**Question:**

**What is the song that makes you feel the most empowered?**

Okay, I just got the this song on my Ipod, so this has been on my mind, and I was just wondering what songs other peeps feel empowered listening to. My song is Run the World (Girls) by Beyonce (the Queen). I can always jam to this song and am always in the mood to listen to it. I'm all for empowering other girls and making sure they know they are beautiful. That's one of my biggest things; making sure people know that they are great and beautiful. So, yeah, that's my empowering song.

A close second might be Bad Blood (by Taylor Swift) but that might be just because the badass music video.


	38. The Last Goodbye

**Chapter 38: The Last Goodbye**

* * *

><p><strong>"Why should you worry about the future? You don't even know the present properly. Take care of the present, and the future will take care of itself."<strong>

**-Ramana Maharshi**

* * *

><p>"Light purple," M.M. asked, turning towards me, the two dresses she was holding up to herself swaying with her, "or dark?" I blinked up at her, in the middle of toweling my hair.<p>

"Light purple?" I tried, a little thrown off by the question. She pursed her lips and turned her attentions towards the light purple dress, then smiled confidently.

"This is fitting of Mukuro..." she murmured, admiring the dress against her in the mirror. She laughed and twirled, moving to return the darker dress to her rack of clothes. I ran my hand through my damp hair as she undressed, looking towards the door. It had been several hours since Fran, Ken and Chikusa left to retrieve Mukuro, disguised as Iris and two Millefiore men. I had confidence that they would succeed, but that confidence wavered when I thought of the other group, in Japan, whose qualifications for Choice depended on my presence there or not. And that was entirely up to Dayita at this point, which is something I was slightly unsure of. Although she acted confident, I had yet to see any of her abilities and, even though she acted like it, I didn't know her well enough to truly believe in her. Blind trust was all I could hope for at this moment, and that thought was slightly terrifying.

"What about you?"

"Hm?" I looked over, snapped out of my thoughts, to see M.M., now dawned in light purple, glancing over at my quizzically.

"Well?" she asked again, "You have anything to wear?"

"Not really," I said shrugging. I pulled my legs up with me on the bed, fingering the material of the slightly oversized sweat pants of Fran's that I was wearing. "I've pretty much been borrowing clothes the whole time I've been here," I admitted, moving my towel to my shoulders. "I didn't exactly get a chance to pack my bags before I came here, yeah?" M.M. scrunched her nose.

"That sucks," she said bluntly, as she moved over to the rack. "It'll be big in the chest area, but I'm sure I can find something for you," she commented idly, moving through the clothes. I blinked, processing her words, my eye twitching when I picked out her comment.

"You don't have to do that," I started.

"Please, as if I'd let Mukuro see you like that," she stated, rolling her eyes. "Of course Fran would pick out the ugliest of his clothes to wear."

"This is my shirt," I pointed out, a bit offended.

"Here," she called, completely ignoring my words. I caught the clothes she threw at me, my eyes scanning over them.

"You can wear these if you want," she drawled, moving on to accessorize herself once more.

"…thanks," I said, not knowing how else to respond, and a little touched that she actually cared enough.

"They are the cheapest things I own, after all." My eye twitch, once more.

"_Thanks_."

* * *

><p>"You don't know how to braid your own hair?" The disbelief in her voice was impressive.<p>

"I tried," I admitted, watching in the mirror as she finished. "Or, _they_ tried to teach me," I corrected myself. "It just went over my head," I sighed, leaving out the part that Bel picked up on it easily (although he picks up on _everything_ easily). "I can do a regular braid," I added hopefully, then frowned. "But it's not very good." M.M. stared at me in the mirror with a disappointed look.

"You're pathetic," she stated. "Really."

"But, it was kind of nice doing your hair," she admitted callously, crossing her ankles in the chair she had brought up to the mirror. I shifted myself, facing her. "Kind of like having a little sister, minus the annoying brat part," she added dismissively. She then sighed loudly, looking towards the door. "I just want Mukuro to get here already…" Fingering with my new braid, I look towards the door as well, not knowing what else to do.

For the past hour or so, M.M. engaged me in what I could only guess was 'girl time', which was an unfamiliar concept to me. However, M.M.'s blunt attitude boded surprisingly well with me, bypassing my usually hesitation when it came to these things. After letting me borrow some of her clothes (borrow was the key word, as I got a lecture that I was supposed to give the clothes back no matter how 'cheap' they were), she engaged in almost a full blown make over, hair and make-up included. And even though I felt more like a doll she was playing with to pass time, I couldn't help but wonder about my future-self's relationship with her, if there was one at all. And so I asked her.

_"Our relationship?" She raised an eyebrow at my blunt question, then shrugged indifferently. "You were fine. Way better than Chrome," she said the name with distaste, a fact which I ignored. "It was obvious that you weren't after Mukuro, and you were always pretty nice to me, I guess," she shrugged again, her eyes moving to the side in thought. "This is actually the most I've talked to you," she admitted, leaning forward to continue working on my eyes. _

_"And?" I prompted curiously. _

_"You're a good way to pass time," she answered bluntly. I tried to keep my expression from falling._

_"….thanks."_

But, then again, thinking back, I noted as I stared at the door absently, I didn't expect that much of an answer. I blinked, and looked at M.M. who was looking at me as well. We sat, listening intently for the sound again. She smiled widely as be both confirmed, yes, we did hear a vehicle approaching. She shot up out of the chair, moving to the mirror swiftly, checking her appearance once more.

"Perfect," she stated, winking at herself, then moving towards the door, her dress swishing in her wake. She shot back as the door was thrown open and Fran entered. She gave him an irritated look as he entered, to which he replied with a blank expression, per usual.

"We're back, Nee-chan," he announced to me. He raised an eyebrow at my appearance, but with one simple head gesture to M.M. it was explained. "Ah," he said softly, moving aside to let Ken and Chikasa in. I stepped aside as well, making sure they had a clear path to the bed, which had its curtains drawn back, prepped for Mukuro's arrival. He almost looked like a bundle, being carried between them, Mukuro's face barely showing. M.M. frowned, and let out an angry huff.

"He's not even awake," she tutted, glaring at Fran as if it was his fault. He held up his hands, innocently blinking.

"It's not my fault that master's tired," he stated, looking back over at Mukuro as they placed him on the bed. Yawning himself, he continued, "You'd think with all the sleep he's been getting he'd be wide awake." I moved forward as soon as they had him situated, and they promptly moved back, letting me through. I had the medical experience, after all, and they were well aware of that. With gloves already situated, I began making an evaluation of his body, making sure there were no injuries to be found.

"Well," M.M. said after ten minutes, tapping her foot impatiently.

"He's injury free," I stated, crossing my arms behind my back and turning to them, "but he has to regain his motor senses and muscle control, of course. Floating in a tankard of water for a decade hurts those a bit after all," I added offhandedly.

"Whoo-hoo!" Ken jumped up from where he had been sitting against the wall anxiously waiting. "He'll be back in no time, then right?!" He asked, turning to me excitedly.

"Knowing him," I said, scratching the back of my head, "probably. He'll still need rest, though," I added before Ken became too excited.

"He's no ordinary man after all," Chikusa added with a light smile. "I'm getting a drink," he said, moving to the cooler. "You want anything, Ken, Fran? Hm?"

"The brat's asleep," M.M. muttered, sighing. I looked up from studying Mukuro again, to see, that yes, Fran was asleep, sitting on a small stool and leaning against the wall.

"He used a lot of power tricking the Vindice," Chikusa noted as he threw Ken a drink.

"One of the three, right?" I recalled. He nodded.

"It's impressive, really," he continued, cocking his head slightly. "Knowing all three illusionists that are capable of tricking the Vindice."

"Hm?" I looked over at him, confused. "Mukuro and Fran I know," I started, counting off with my fingers. "And Mammon's dead in this future. Who's the third?" Ken scoffed, becoming immediately annoyed.

"That Indian chick," he spat, almost growling. "She's annoying as hell." M.M. scoffed.

"You're one to talk."

"The hell did you just say?" Chikusa and I sighed in union, and I looked back over at Fran's peaceful face, impressed that he could sleep through this. Deciding wise to ignore the growing argument behind me, I focused on Mukuro once more, sitting on the side of the bed.

It was extremely strange, seeing him in the flesh. Of course, it was a different feeling than seeing him in my head, but it also differed from the one time I met him in real life before, when he was possessing Chrome in the ring battles. Seeing him in personal, I felt almost a tug towards him, our connection almost feeling like a hum, softly playing in the background, and yet still there, securely connecting us, anchoring us. It was hard to think back to when there was no connection at all, the time where I had first entered the future, which seemed so long ago.

"It's nice," I admitted quietly, barely glancing over to see Chikusa now standing between M.M. and Ken, in an attempt to sedate them, and Fran, still snoozing away on his stool. "It's pretty cool to see you in person, Mukuro," I admitted again, smiling softly. I blinked, thinking about what I just said.

"But I never said that….yeah."

* * *

><p><em>"Can I call you okasan?"<em>

_"Hm?" The young women looked over at the boy, whose eyes remained fixated on the sky above them. Her green eyes scanned over his placid face, and she placed the book she had been reading in the grass beside her. _

_"Why do you want to call me that?" She asked with amusement in her tone. The boy made a slight shrugging motion and turned his head slightly towards her. _

_"You basically raised me, right?" He recalled. "That makes you my mom, or something like that." She snorted at his logic. "So, can I call you okasan?" He repeated bluntly. _

_"No way. That's weird," she whined in a childish manner._

_"You're weird," he shot back blankly. She puffed her cheeks and reached out to poke his forehead. _

_"You're weirder," she chided back, then moved her hand to pinch his cheek. He scrunched his nose and rolled over, facing away from the young woman. She let out a light laugh in response, and ended with a sigh, looking back at the serene landscape. _

_"If anything," she continued after a moment, "call me nee-san." He blinked, thinking it through, then nodded slightly in confirmation._

_"Okay… nee-san." _

* * *

><p>My eyes flickered over, as Fran groggily opened his.<p>

"Ah, you're awake," I said, putting my notebook down and looking fully over at him. He blinked, looking confused as he glanced over at me. He yawned widely, and rubbed his eyes muttering.

"Right… this is the younger nee-san," he stated quietly before pushing himself up to stretch. "Hm?" He looked around the room.

"Ken and Chikusa went out to get more supplies," I explained without him having to ask, "since Ken already drank everything. M.M. is in the other room," I said gesturing to one of the three doors in the room, "she said she was tired of waiting, and now I'm pretty sure she's taking a nap."

"Ah," Fran said, nodding slightly. He looked over at the bed I was leaning against, squinting his eyes as if he was trying to look past the curtains.

"He has woken up yet," I informed him. "He contact you?" He shook his head.

"No, it was just a regular dream…. Well, memory," he corrected himself, giving me side-glance I did not understand. "He's saving up for the big battle."

"Yeah…." I muttered, lifting myself up to sit on the side of the bed, moving the curtains back revealing Mukuro's peaceful features. I frowned, my thoughts moving to Japan once more.

"They'll be fine."

"Hm?" I looked over as Fran sat down beside me.

"Dayita knows what she's doing," he continued. "And besides, out of anyone to trick Byakuran, she's one of our best bets." I sighed again, leaning my head on his shoulder.

"I suppose," I said softly, his words giving me slight comfort, "that I'll just have to take your word, huh?"

* * *

><p>"Hm?" Tsuna looked over, noticing someone approach as the others gushed over their base. "Cloud…" Tsuna muttered, narrowing his eyes as she neared. "Cloud!" He restated, beginning to happily run to her. However, he almost stopped completely in his tracks, the moment he saw her face clearly, alarms rang in his head. Something was wrong, he told himself, as the others soon noticed the girl as well. The noise of the girl greeting the others was dull to him as the future don stood there, transfixed almost, his eyes wide and staring as he repeated to himself over and over that something wasn't right.<p>

"Tsuna!" he was torn out of his shock as Cloud threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around him tightly and burying her face into his shoulder. "You're okay, right?" She asked, her green eyes gazing into his intensely, knowingly, but it was different, a _lie_, he told himself. Her bottom lip quivered and she hugged him once more.

"I know you know, Vongola." He stiffened, as she whispered in his ear. Not her voice, he told himself, this isn't her. "Say nothing," she hissed, "for everyone's sake. Nobody can know." He blinked again, wrapping his arms around her, this stranger, and giving her his best smile, trying to convince himself to react like he would if this were actually Cloud.

"You're okay too," he asked, continuing the act, making his stomach twist. "Right?" She nodded, releasing him.

"I'm surprised they let you come." She turned, smiling brilliantly, using _her_ smile, to look at Reborn who hopped onto her shoulder.

"Reborn!"

"Hug me and die."

"Right, right," she said, holding her hands up in mock innocence, pegging her laugh, her smile, her manners, everything down to a point. It was terrifying, watching this person with her body. But, Tsuna thought, reminded himself, this wasn't a threat. Disturbing maybe, but this person, whoever they were, they were here to help. And so, Tsuna could play along, he decided, watching as 'Cloud' explained that she had to come, how they were all against it, but she knew she had to, using words that, yes, he admitted the real Cloud would use. Even as she introduced herself to Shoichi and Spanner, and they questioned her, everything, every movement, every word, it was all like it was really her. But it wasn't, Tsuna knew, it was basically yelling at him, but he didn't know _how_ he knew. He just knew it was all an act; a game.

He could play this game, he thought as Spanner warned them of a large amount of flames approaching. He had to, he reminded himself, he steadied himself, as she slipped an arm into his, looking up into the sky as Byakuran's face appeared, unnerving the whole group, and yet Tsuna felt he was slightly more unnerved by her touch, this strangers, but he had to keep quiet. Play the game, he told himself.

Because he was about to play an even more dangerous one.

* * *

><p>I blinked holding back a sigh as I watched Ken basically prance around the room, popping multiple party poppers and drinking excessively. He three his arms around Chikusa and Fran and pulled them closer.<p>

"Yahoo! This is great!" He called out as Chikusa gave him an annoyed look and Fran sighed. "We should be celebrating!" I eyed the numerous discarded poppers and bottles on the floor.

"Ken," Chikusa said placidly, removing Ken's arm from his shoulder. "You're drunk."

"Am not!"

"It doesn't make a difference either way, right?" Fran state blankly, looking up at the ceiling. "He's always like this; alcohol involved or not."

"Why, you!" I turned away as Ken growled angrily at Fran, deciding to focus again on helping Mukuro. I moved the curtain aside and pulled myself fully on the bed, closing it behind me (after a while, it got really annoying with Ken watching me, questioning everything I do. So, now I work behind the curtain, away from prying, irritating eyes). I set to work on Mukuro's arm once more, helping to restore the muscles that had been inactive for years. I stopped, the arm beneath me barely twitching. My eyes shot up to his face as his eyes slowly blinked open, if barely.

"Hey," I said softly, smiling. His eyes shifted over to me.

"Chiavarone…" he muttered, clearly confused. "Ah, that's right. _Little_ Chiavarone." I looked over at the small opening in the curtain, seeing that all four were still distracted, even having dragged M.M. in their argument.

"Don't," Mukuro called softly, barely moving his hand to brush mine. I looked back at him, and sat myself down once more from where I had moved to alert the others of his awakening. "Just for now… let me rest."

"They are quite," I struggled for the word, glancing back at the group, "animated, aren't they."

"Quite," Mukuro said weakly, amused. He sighed, and closed his eyes in concentration.

"Are you hurting?" I asked, concerned.

"Not exactly," he started. "Just… heavy."

"That's what happened when you don't use your body for a decade," I chided. "You really should get out more." He let out a breath of laughter.

"I try…" He drifted off, and I assumed that he fell asleep again. Then, he spoke.

"This you..." he murmured softly, "it's nice. To see you bright again."

"Bright?" I repeated.

"Happier," he restated weakly. "More you than before. You lost that," he frowned and furrowed his eyebrows, remembering something unpleasant, "and it was her fault." I narrowed my eyes, not understanding who he was talking about.

"I'll make sure," he started again, his head tilting, this time, truly drifting back. "I'll make sure that doesn't happen again….."

"Just rest for now," I told him, gently patting his hand. "Just rest."

* * *

><p>"Kyoya, Squalo!" Dayita mentally scowled, contonueing her façade as Cloud. She was however, quite pleased with herself, as Byakuran had no suspicions whatsoever concerning her true identity. She played her part well, looking uncomfortable whenever the feared leader would glance at her, then looking him straight in the eyes defiantly, strongly, just as her own dear Cloud-chan would do. Yes, she played her part well, and why wouldn't she? She knew the girl so well, and the others were so simple and easy to read. But now, she held back a frown, watching as Squalo and Hibari stepped forward, and as Byakuran tried (and failed naturally; it was obvious this girl, Uni, had her mind made) to convince the young girl to return to his side. Dayita wanted nothing more than to throw this façade and step in herself, eager to show off, per usual, but for now, she would continue this game. She bit back a smile when the girl completely invalidated the choice game, but let that smile go as Tsunayoshi grabbed her hand and pulled her into the group.<p>

"Everybody! Let's protect her!"

Dayita narrowed her eyes, now dropping her act entirely and stepped forward as the group was attacked.

"As long as we're in defiance," she said, completely dispelling her illusion of Cloud and revealing herself, in all of her glory. "I might as well come clean."

"Y-you're that illusionist from before!" She glanced over at Tsuna, amused. Tsuna frowned, still sensing something off about the woman.

"Ah, Vongola. I was quite annoyed at first," she admitted. "But you kept our little secret, so it turned out fine in the end."

"You knew, Tsuna?"

"Y-yeah, b-"

"That's not something you need to worry about at the moment," Dayita interrupted, frowning slightly as her illusion she was casting over Zakura was strained, her concentration wavering because of the conversation. "We need to withdraw." Dino shook his head, coming out of his shock.

"She's right, Tsuna," he noted, turning towards him. "They're trying to make this battle last long."

"They?" Tsuna asked, only seeing Squalo fighting.

"Dayita's already fighting," Reborn said, "What you were talking to was an illusion."

"Huh?!" Tsuna looked over to see the form of the woman evaporating, turning to mist.

"Tsuna," Dino called, "I suggest you withdraw so we can reorganize ourselves!"

"Eh..!?" Tsuna looked around, only seeing buildings. "Even if you say so… Isn't this place full of buildings no matter how far we?"

"Then, the super flame ring transportation system that brought you guys her should be near by," Uni explained.

"Warped from Namimori?!"

"True…" Spanner noted as he and Yamamoto approached, the rain guardian supporting him. "There's a metal reaction in the sky above the vongola base."

"It seems like we can get back to Namimori town," Reborn said, "by using the transportation system."

Dayita glanced over from distracting Zakuro, noting that they were hurrying to the transportation system.

"Enough!" Zakuro called out, dispelling her illusion by force with a burst of storm flames. He scowled, not seeing that the group was attempting to run away. "I'll just use this one!"

"That one is too strong, Zakuro," Kikyou held up a hand, moving in front of the other. "Byakuran-sama doesn't wish to hurt Uni-sama."

"We need to move," Dayita said, appearing beside Tsuna, scaring him. "Even we can't stall them forever," she admitted, watching as Squalo came back, standing on his shark box weapon. He scowled at the Indian as he neared.

"You're not even trying," he called her out. She shrugged.

"What can I say," she callously admitted. "My heart's not into it. I did my part."

"Hyee! That guy!" The two looked over to Byakuran himself, coming at them at full speed.

"Youg guys go on ahead," Dino said, preparing himself. "This time I'll buy you ti-."

"Oh, no," Dayita stepped forward, pulling Dino back. "I'd never hear the end of it if something happened to you." She frowned, looking at Byakuran as she brought out one of her hell rings, ignoring the Don's argument behind her.

"Didn't think I'd use this so soon," she muttered mostly to herself.

"And you won't have to…"

"Hm?" Dayita perked up as mist surrounded her, and a shape appeared in front of her.

"You shouldn't things that aren't your in the first place," Mukuro Rokudo said, now standing in front of Dayita as Byakuran approached.

"I won this fair and square," she chided, backing away quickly, completely fine with not facing Byakuran. "But are you sure that you can face him without it?"

"I'll stop him," he told her, turning his full attention to Byakuran.

"Mu-Mukuro!?"

* * *

><p>Chikusa and I turned our heads quickly, seeing Mukuro's eyes snap open. He breathed out, and tried to push himself up, I moved to help him, guiding him as he strained his arms just to sit up.<p>

"Mukuro!" Ken almost bounced up to him, much in the manner of a dog. "You're awake!" M.M. smiled brightly and put her hand on her hip, obviously showing herself off to him. Chikusa narrowed his eyes, picking up on Mukuro's expression.

"You meet him again?" Fran asked bluntly.

"We have to get to Japan," Mukuro stated, addressing thw whole room, "to aid them in protecting Uni."

"Is everyone okay?" I asked, concerned. "Did Dayita pull it off?" An annoyed look crossed his eyes.

"She did," he admitted, almost hesitantly, "and luckily, she backed off before she took my prey. It seems her only interest lies with you, Chiavarone." I breathed out a sigh of relief, happy that me not being there didn't mess anything up. I blinked and looked over, watching as Mukuro swung his legs over the side of the bed, and attempted to stand up. I moved forward, catching his shoulder as he almost fell.

"Don't be too eager," I reprimanded, almost teasing. "Even you can't recover that fast." He looked away from me, irritated.

"Prepare our trip to Japan," he told the others. "We have to arrive there before the final battle." They nodded and immediately set to work. "In the meantime, Chiavarone," he said, turning to me, "you must help me in my recuperation." I pursed my lips, not enjoying him telling me what to do.

"I can, and will drop you," I warned him. "Despite how little time we have, you have to take it slow." He scoffed as we began stepping forward, his legs shaking.

"I don't want to hear that from you, of all people."

"Doctors make the worst patients," I reminded him, letting go of him slightly, and being surprised when he didn't immediately drop. He rolled his eyes, and clasped my shoulder again.

"Obviously," he stated, rolling his eyes. I held back a smirk, almost missing these iterations. I also noted that he didn't seem to remember the first time her woke up, if that time even counted. I glanced over, noticing him staring at my face. I raised an eyebrow.

"Are you wearing make-up?" he prompted, clearly amused. My expression dead-panned.

"…. Just keep walking."

* * *

><p>"Master, I'm going to take you down that ramp."<p>

"Do _not_ push me down that ramp."

"Oh? But it would be fun."

"Okay," I said, pushing Fran aside and putting myself behind Mukuro in his wheelchair (a fact that he was not happy about, but I assured him that it woul dbe faster traveling with one), "I think it's safe to say that you," I looked at Fran, "are banned from wheelchair pushing. Medic's orders." Fran pouted. Ken grinned.

"Ha!"

"This doesn't mean that you're back on," I pointed out to him. "We can't have a repeat of what happened when you got too excited." The man huffed, turning away from me once more, and pouting along with Fran. M.M. sighed and rolled her eyes from my side as we waited for Chikusa with our tickets.

"Why are we taking public transport anyway?" she ask irritated.

"We can't raise suspicion," Mukuro explained, "and we have to get to Japan as fast as possible."

"Don't worry," Fran called, waving his hand lightly in the air. "I've got a super cool illusion around us."

"I've noticed," I said, looking at my own, unfamiliar reflection in a reflective surface nearby. Mukuro sighed irritably. "Although it is amusing that you made Mukuro into an old man." Said old man's eye twitched.

"I had to make it believable," Fran explained. "Master is the old, ugly, grandfather; Nee-chan is the supportive daughter and mother that brought her old, ailing father along with them on their family vacation; Chikusa is the stoic, unresponsive husband; M.M. is the spoiled, bratty teenager; Ken is the rebellious, idiotic son, and I'm the cute, innocent little brother."

"There's nothing innocent about you, Fran," Chikusa said tiredly as he returned to us. "Your illusions made it difficult to discern you guys," he stated as he handed each of us our tickets. I nodded thanks. Mukuro sighed, shaking his head.

"You are truly, idiotic," he said, not even having to look at Fran. "Now," He started, motioning me to push him forward, "we've wasted enough time already. Let's head off to Japan, shall we?"

* * *

><p>"What the fuck was that?" Squalo asked as he stormed into the Vongola base's communication room, as Dayita practitcally floated in behind him.<p>

"What was what, Squ-chan?" the woman asked innocently.

"Voooi!" He snarled, turning on her, "you know exactly what the fuck I mean! Why didn't you go all the way out when stalling?" He asked, jabbing a finger at her. "I know you're better than that measly act I saw you pulling."

"If you must know, _Squalo_," she sneered, her cheerful deposition gone as she swatted his hand away, "if did, indeed, go all the way out, as you say, then that would have affected the others as well. Although powerful, my illusions at full strength don't know friend from foe. It affects _everyone_. I doubt those children would have handled going mad, now would they?" He scoffed, turning away from her to contact the Varia.

"And why did you just have an illusion up for Cloud?" He continued, turning to glare at her. "That didn't seem prepared to me!"

"I assure you, I had it handled, didn't I?" she asked, irritated, and moved her sari to reveal to him a small, mechanical box attached to her side. "I had samples of her flames, and her DNA on my fingertips," she explained, holding her hand off and taking off a small patch on one of her fingers. "If I needed to prove I was her, which I didn't," she pointed out, "I would have had it covered. Varick knows what he's doing and so do I. I would appreciate it if you didn't doubt me," she sighed, returning to her childlike behavior. "I'm offended, actually."

"You can't be trusted," Squalo spat, waiting for someone on the other end to pick up.

"You haven't tried," she reminded him, sitting down and turning in one of the chairs of the room. He turned to rebut, but was cut off by Lussaria, picking up the line from the Varia's end.

"Ah, Squ! You're okay!" Lussaria exclaimed from the screen. "What happened in Japan?"

"Lsiten up!" Squalo barked, dicing right into the situation. "The shitty brats lost the Choice game, but that doesn't matter. The second in command defected and we're protecting her now. Our number one priority is her protection and defeating Byakuran. That's it! Send some guys to Japan immediately!"

"You can't ask me something like this all of a sudden," Lussaria said, throwing a pinky up.

"The enemy's main force is in Namimori, you know!

"That doesn't concern me," Lussaria rebuked. "The Varia is busy."

"With what?!" Squalo yelled back, becoming angry. Lussaria suddenly grew nervous, a single bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face. "Do whatever the fuck you're busy with later! What happened to Fran? We need illusions! And send the brat too!" Squalo decided, making Dayita perk up behind him. "Byakuran's focus has completely shifted, so she should be safe now. We're going to need her skills and healing!" Lussaria paled, causing Squalo to narrow his eyes.

"Ah, about that…" Lussaria started laughing nervously. "Fran, well, he took her with him."

"… WHAT!? WHERE THE FUCK ARE THEY?!"

"We don't exactly know?"

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW?!"

"Well, he said that he was visting a girl, but now that he took Cloud with him," Lussaria said thoughtfully, "we don't know how true that is. Oh," he said, his hand on cheek, "it took us forever to calm Bel down, and we're still pretty sure that he'll kill Fran on sight next time they see each other…"

"I don't care about that!" Squalo shouted, riled up as Dayita laughed at the situation. "That damned kid! Just find them and bring them here!" Dayita stopped laughing when the screen went black. "VVVOOOI!" She sighed, plugging her ears as Squalo yelled. "Luss, what happened?" Dayita clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"He found us," she muttered. Squalo turned to her, but then blinked, finding her to be completely gone. His eye switched and he slammed his fist on the table before exiting the room.

"That damn bitch," he muttered, making his way towards the group that had gathered. "Running off like the fucking coward she is."

* * *

><p>"Admit it," Mukruo said, turning to me, standing at his full height. "You're impressed." I scrunched my nose, looking up at him.<p>

"I'm more annoyed by your height than anything." He hummed turning towards the forest where the sounds of battle rang.

"That's just because you're so small," he chided, smirking.

"You're still shaking," I noted, looking at his legs.

"Fortunately, I'm an illusionist," he reminded me, "so my body does not need to be in peak physical shape. This will do," he assured me, stepping into the forest. "You remember what we discussed?"

"What kind of question is that?" I asked, giving him a side glance.

"Master must have really poor trust in your memory skills, Nee-chan," Fran said from my other side. Mukuro sighed, already annoyed with his pupil.

"You know what I meant," he said.

"Yeah, I know what to do," I gave in, looking away a bit nervous.

"You'll be fine," he assured me, rolling his eyes. "You're the best suited to face them, and you'll need the flames you absorb to heal the others."

"Don't worry, Nee-chan," Fran said, giving me a thumbs up and a small smile. "You'll do great."

"Let's get started," Mukuro said, stepping forward. "We've got a battle to win."

* * *

><p>"Where the fuck have you been?"<p>

"Hm?" I peaked out from behind Fran, looking away from the illusions they were creating. I had just wondered back over from healing a few big injuries of the other group, promising that I would return once I had more flames and ignoring their questions that my statement had prompted. I mulling over Kyoya's constant glaring, knowing he was extremely pissed at me about something, but not knowing what is was, when Bel spoke to me, reminding me that the Varia were there.

"Ah, Bel-senpai," Fran greeted, holding up a hand. "Long time n-"

"Say one more word and you're dead, frog," Bel seethed, bringing out his knives. "It's taking all my willpower not to skewer you on the spot." I blinked, trying to think of why he would be pissed. Then it hit me, as I caught an amused glance from Xanxus. I had disobeyed orders. Again.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no," I muttered, cupping my cheeks and shaking my head. "I'm dead," I stated quietly, confusing both Bel and Fran, not even bothering to watch as Illusions of the Varia were killed. "I am so fucking dead when he finds out." Bel tilted his head, confused about who I was referring to, since he was not aware that Squalo was alive. I turned to Fran.

"You think I could just say you kidnapped me?" Fran blinked, but I cut him off before he could speak. "Yeah," I said nodding, "I'm just going to say that and hope for the best."

"Works for me," Bel sang, flashing a malicious grin and knives.

"I feel betrayed, Nee-chan," Fran muttered, taking a step back from Bel.

"Ah," Mukuro interrupted, "Looks like it's time. Come along, little one," Mukuro chided as he stepped forward. I stepped back as the area in front of us was attacked, holding up one arm to shield my eyes.

"Hey," I heard Fran's monotone voice drawl. "You just took a step forward, master. You always want to stand in the middle."

"Kufufufu… what are you saying, little one? It's because your head is in the way," Mukuro excused himself, fully revealed by the smoke at this point.

"You always get the spotlight," Fran complained. My eyes narrowed, ignoring the others as they complained, focusing on my target that I was expected to defeat.

"Kufufufu, warm up is over!"

"Hey, Bel," I tugged at his sleeve, as the others continued talking. He looked over in question, ready to fight. "First of all, I need you to trust me." He titled his head slightly, then grinned.

"Ushishi, of course, I trust you. Completely."

"Do you trust me fighting one of them on my own?" His grin wavered.

"… slightly less."

"Well, I'm going to need you to," I said, looking over at my target.

"I need you to drive her away from the others," I said, pointing at Bluebell who was already fighting, the fight having begun as we were talking. Bel looked over and we watched as Levi's attacks proved futile and Bluebell laughing, swishing around in her bubble of rain flames.

"Can I ask why," Bel said seriously, "you want to fight one of them?"

"Because," I said, bringing out my box weapons, and opening them, "apparently, I'm the best suited for the job."

* * *

><p>"It doesn't matter how many flames you put into those," Bluebell chanted, sticking her tongue out as Bel continued to throw knives. "Even if they can reach me, I can just dodge them stupid!" I tensed in anticipation as she drew closer to where Kashi's doubles were set up. Jian, smaller than me for the time being, mewled softly beside me as we hid in wait. This needed to be quick, unexpected. And it needed to be now, I realized, seeing that she was exactly in place. Putting my hand to my mouth, I whistled loudly, signaling Kashi.<p>

Bluebell tensed, hearing the whistle and seeing her opponent jump back, retreating away from her. I watched as Bluebell's eyes widened, seeing walls of bamboo spring up around her, and sighing in relief when they closed before she could escape.

"What the hell is this?!" I heard her yell as I ran forward, Jian with me, setting his paws on one of the walls of the bamboo box in front of us. I glanced over to see Bel return to the battle, his part of the job done.

"I'm really glad we were right about this," I breathed out, laughing slightly as I heard Bluebell banging on the walls of the box. I knocked on the box. "Yo. Having fun in there?"

"Who are you?!" She yelled. "Byakuran never told us about a weapon like this!"

"Not really a weapon," I corrected her. "Not really a defense either, but close enough to call it one. If anything, it's a container," I recalled, thinking back to the notebook I had been pouring myself over for the past few days, making sure to know every detail of my box weapons. "You should be feeling tired, yeah? Jian sure is getting big out here, after all" I noted, looking up at him beside me.

"What's happening?" she yelled, now panicking.

"Mukuro was right," I said. "You have the worst ability to go up against me. This is my bamboo box," I explained to her through the wall, stepping forward as the box became smaller as Jian was absorbing it. "This isn't the way it's supposed to be used, but for this situation, it works. The bamboo shoots have a strong Cloud attribute of propagation and absorption, and usually can only do this if touching my opponent in some way. However," I said leaning against the box, "you project your rain flames into a bubble around you, which means that my shoots don't even have to touch you to absorb the flames. Apparently, this box is usually used for the opposite, where I trap an opponent and submerge them in dense rain flames, like your ability, but," I continued, smiling, "I like this way better, don't you? Because of your ability, it gives me an abundance of flames with me barely doing a thing. You are," I said, stepping back now that the box was human sized and Jian now towering over me, "truly unlucky."

Using my box, I called Kashi back in, along with the bamboo that surrounded Bluebell. I made sure to leave Jian out, knowing my body couldn't handle that many flames. I stared down sadly at the girl, a child, as she lay on the ground, panting and weak. He eyes shifted up to me, glaring.

"You… you're that bitch Byakuran wanted to capture a while ago," she said, gritting her teeth as she tried to push herself up.

"Don't strain yourself," I said, almost holding a hand out to her. "I didn't absorb all your flames; just enough to weaken you."

"Why?" She spat at me. I shrugged, looking back towards the battle, knowing I should get back soon, so I could begin healing.

"I don't kill," I said simply. Her expression hardened, my answer angering her. We both tensed, looking over to see a bright light from the main battle field. My earlier confidence from sedating Bluebell dissolved, as I was reminded of Ghost.

"…. It's too early," Bluebell muttered, her eyes filled with fear as well. "Byakuran, it's too early!" She panicked, trying to push herself and run, only to fall once more.

"Hey!" I called out, going after her and grabbing her shoulder. She growled at me, and pushed off of me.

"Get off me you bitch!" she cried, pushing away and trying to run again. I reached out for her once more, only for Jian to grab me, hauling me back as beams of light tore through the forest. My eyes widened as one hit Bluebell, draining the little flames she had left, morphing her body into a corpse, and then nothing. I blinked, my body shaking slightly, having thought for one moment that since I was here, since I had subdued her, then she wouldn't have died that way. I looked up at Jian, realizing that if he hadn't pulled me back, that I would have been hit as well.

"Jian," I said to him after he had given me a refill on my flames, "Stay here." He nodded and plopped down, knowing if he got too close, his flames would be drained. I sprinted forward, renewed and brimming with energy, but knowing that would slowly edge away as I got closer to Ghost. I glanced over and almost dove for Chrome, seeing a beam heading straight for her, but stopped myself as I saw Mukuro, who quickly pulled her down. He looked over at me, and barely nodding, the look on my face making it clear what happened.

"Tsuna needs to get over here now," I said, running up to Ryohei and Gokudera. "He's the only one who can take that thing down." They looked over at me surprised.

"We don't even know what that thing is!" Gokudera told me, scowling.

"It's a mass of dying will flames," I explained, causing more eyes to look at me. "It was mutated when Byakuran brought himself over from another world."

"Ah," Fran said, "that's why is looks like him."

"How'd the hell did you find this out?" Gokudera asked.

"I just got the information out of Bluebell before… before she was hit by one of those beams."

"It destroyed its own comrade?!"

"I don't think it knows the difference," I said with a twinge of sadness. "Tsuna needs to get here; his zero-point break through is the only thing that can stop it- ah!" I caught Gokudera as he wavered, then glanced over to see Fran and Bel supporting each other as well. I frowned, realizing that I was the most fit out of all them, having just gotten flames from Jian and not being as closely exposed to Ghost as they were. I caught Ryohei with my other arm, letting both of them lean on my shoulder.

"It's turning!" I tensed, ready to move out of the way, hoping that the beam heading for us wouldn't follow, only to have someone familiar step in front of me.

"Yamamoto!"

"Yo! Nice you see the real you, Cloud," he greeted, turning his head slightly to smile at as he brandished his sword, sacrificing his own flames so we wouldn't be hit. "Looks like hell's broken loose here. I'd heard about it, but this flame absorption… it's a lot worse than I expected. I'm getting weaker by the second."

"Never less, we need to stop that giant!" I looked over as I moved Gokudera and Ryohei out of harm's way, smiling brightly to see Dino, Squalo and Dayita, followed closely by Kusakabe. I noted Squalo was not as injured as I remembered, and then glanced at Dayita who winked.

"Had to save our dear Squ-chan from a nasty death," she said. Squalo nearly growled in response.

"You're late, scum!" Xanxus glared at Squalo, who gruffly and almost sarcastically apologized. Dino quickly came over to me, putting Ryohei's arm over his shoulder and helping me set the two panting guardians down.

"Are you okay, Cloud?" he said, turning to me. I nodded.

"I have a reserve of flames a little ways from here, were they won't be absorbed as easily," I explained to him. "So I'm definitely better off than these guys." He nodded, letting out a sigh of relief, then turned to look at Ghost once more, grimacing.

"Ghost's electric shock is getting stronger!"

"He appeared here out of thin air," Mukuro noted, "he might use the absorbed flames to teleport again."

"He could get to Uni in seconds," Gokudera realized. I grimaced, my breathing becoming a bit more labored as more of my flames went to Ghost.

"I won't let that happen!" We looked over to see Tsuna, flying towards us at full speed. I sighed in relief.

"Took him long enough," I complained lightly, then noticed Lal Mirch, who was still injured. I scowled, wanting so badly to heal them again, fully, but knowing I couldn't at this moment. Looking up again, I smiled, realzing that Tsuna was going straight to his Zero Point stance.

"That stance!" Dino exclaimed, "it's the stance that steals the opponent's flames!"

"The dying will Zero Point Break Through," Squalo named.

"Lord Sawada plans to absorb the flames too!" Basil shouted.

There was a surge as the two collided, causing us all to look away. A pained, inhuman scream erupted from the collision, followed by Tsuna's yell. Dino grabbed me as we felt a great force pull us forward.

"Shit!" I managed to hear Kikyo curse, "We'll all be sucked in!" I squinted my eyes, attempting to see past the almost blinding light the two were emitting. I blinked, seeing one shape being sucked into another, and then stillness. Peace. Dino's grip lightened, but his arms remained around me as we all watched Tsuna land.

"Woot," Fran cheered, breaking the silence. I looked over at him and shook my head, the other's cheer and happiness eventually dying down as well.

"Something's not right," Squalo said, narrowing his eyes.

"Zero Level break through is a tactic that absorbs the opponents flames and turns them into your own," Dino explained, still in a protective position in front of me, "but Tsuna's flames didn't grow, even after having absorbed Ghost's Flames."

"There's no mistake that Ghost had a great amount of flame power," Lussaria pointed out. "After all, it devoured not only our flames, but the flames of the real sixth funeral wreaths. We're all woozy now."

"Impressive indeed." We all tensed, looking up towards the voice. "You defeated Ghost easily."

"He's here," Dino said, scowling. He moved me back, putting himself between me and Byakuran.

"I'm honored to be in the presence of so many notable faces," Byakuran said, smiling. "The boss of the Chiavorone and their princess," I stiffened his eyes sliding over me, "Vongola's Independent Assassination Group, Varia, Mukuro-kun and his followers, the Guardians of Vongola, and lastly, Vongola's tenth." He looked around the group once more, and breathed in deeply, smiling. "The entire main force of the Italian Mafia Family, the Vongola, is assembled before me. You know, Tsunayoshi-kun. You really are a curios person. To be able to coerce Mukuro-kun and Xanxus-kun to submit to you, when they too once tried to kill you…" his eyes narrowed, his smile turning menacing. "That couldn't have been an easy feat." I frowned, knowing exactly what he was trying to do.

"Hey, Scum bag," Xanxus started, glaring up at Byakuran, "whoever said," he a gun up, shooting a large blast of flames at Byakuran, "I was submitting to him?" Mukuro chuckled in agreement.

"He's got that right. I'd thought that the only ones who would take my word and actions at face value," Mukuro said, activating his ring, "would be an ignorant little girl, or foolish young boy, but I see you've put me with the mafia too. How insulting," Mukuro tutted, as a horrifying sight of weapons erupted from his ring.

"I see, so sorry," Byakuran apologized, breaking their attacks as if it were nothing. "Anyway, it looks like you're all quite worn out. What was that feeble attack just now?" He taunted. "Well, I guess it can't be helped, since you had most of your flames sucked dry by Ghost. You're all running on empty right now."

"Everyone stay back," Tsuna put an arm up, and stepped forward heroically. "I'll be his match." There was a moment, then Byakuran laughed.

"Do you have any clue why I came here, Tsunayoshi-kun?" he asked, looking down upon him. "It's because I'm ready now. Both my heart and my body."

"I've been ready," Tsuna responded coolly, his body then blurring, "for ages." It was a flash and Tsuna was behind Byakuran, and then delivered a strong kick. In another second he was in front once more, clutching Byakuran's head. We watched the fight in amazement, my appreciation and admiration for Tsuna simply swelling. That is until a cold shock ran through the group, realizing that Byakuran stopped Tsuna's fist with one finger.

"Oh, what's wrong? Is this all you've got?" he asked lightly. "Now it's my turn." I resisted the urge to run to Tsuna's side as he was thrown into the ground, causing a massive collision.

"You don't mean to say this is as much as you can handle, do you?" Byakuran continued, laughing. "I still haven't even used a tenth of the flames absorbed by ghost!"

"The flames absorbed by ghost?!"

"What the hell are you talking about?!"

"Mm?" Byakuran hummed, arching his back as wings began sporting out of it. "You don't get it, do you? Ghost stole your flames, right? Well, those flames are all… Inside my body!" He cried, lights arching from the magnificent, white wings he had just grown. Tsuna pushed himself up from the crater had had made, scowling. "Are you alright?" he asked, looking down at Tsuna.

"Byakuran…that flame!? He received all the flames that Ghost absorbed!?" Basil shouted.

"Absorbing others' flames without directly touching them…" Dino started, "I've never heard of that before!" Byakuran chuckled again.

"Ghost was 'someone'… he was me, present in another parallel world," Byakuran explained.

"Just like Cloud said," Gokudera exclaimed, causing Byakuran's eyes to shift over to me.

"Other than the ability to absorb flames…" he continued, letting the comment slide, "he also had the ability to share them with me. Though in the end, it was my ability after all."

"What is he talking about…?" Ryohei questioned.

"I don't know," Yamamoto said, shaking his head.

"If you say that," Mukuro began, explaining, "If the dying will flames of every one of us, with the exception of Sawada Tsunayoshi, now have been obtained by Byakuran… the total amount of that flame, is unmeasurable!"

"What are those wings?" Tsuna asked. "The intense flames are taking the forms of wings?"

"Oh… these wings aren't any ordinary flames. It's a symbol. It's a symbol that I'm a being above humans," he explained, sickening me, "proof that I am something more."

"What are you talking about!?" Dino yelled.

"Are you saying you're a god?" Squalo input hotly.

"Hahan, god?" Kikyo said, reminding me of his presence. "Byakuran-sama would be better described as a demon worthy of worship." Byakuran giggled at the notion.

"That's not important," Tsuna concluded, causing Byakuran to look down at him. "It doesn't matter what you are… or what means you use…I'll defeat you here!"

"I admire your spirit, Tsunayoshi-kun," Byakuran admitted, holding his hand up, "I've been waiting for this fight for a long time…" They lit their weapons, both radiating power.

"Wow," Bel allowed. "So you can do it."

"The atmosphere is electrifying," Fran commented. Tsuna charged at Byakuran once more, showering him with attacks.

"It's useless, Tsunayoshi-kun," Byakuran chided, still smiling. "Come play with my pet," he said, a white dragon bursting out of his ring. Tsuna retaliated by releasing his own box weapon. Their movements became blurs as the fight continued. If you weren't watching for one second, you would become lost, which I did often, my eyes continuing to wander over to Lal. I scowled and slipped out from under Dino's arm, rushing over to her. He opened his mouth, but closed it, realizing what I was doing.

"What are you doing?" Lal hissed, looking away from the fight after Tsuna froze Byakuran's dragon with his zero point break through first edition.

"Healing you completely while I have the chance," I told her, already examining her arm. She grimaced, but one look from me told her I wasn't budging and she resigned to continue watching the fight, occasionally having to close her eyes in pain or let out small gasps of discomfort.

Honestly, it made me sick to watch Tsuna fight, knowing that I could have possibly done more to help him. I recalled my conversation with Mukuro before we came, him reminding me that I couldn't help with everything, less I give myself away. I breathed out, pushing myself back from Lal, breathing a bit heavier now that she was completely healed. She barely nodded thanks towards me, too engrossed in the fight. I looked back up in time to see Byakuran's white applause.

"Vongola box beaten," Byakuran sang.

"He destroyed it…" Dino breathed out in disbelief.

"With a pressure…of that strike," Squalo added.

"The white applause is the ultimate defense-technique that will destroy any kind of attack," Byakuran explained happily. "How was that, Tsunayoshi-kun? I bet you have never fought a fight where you'd feel the difference in powers so big. Very scary, ain't it?" I scowled, and looked away as they engaged in combat once more, this time moving to Gokudera, Ryohei and Basil to heal again.

"You need to heal the tenth," Gokudera insisted, grabbing my hand.

"Are you kidding?" I hissed, looking over to see Tsuna being tossed around in battle. "He's playing with him right now," I spat out with venom, looking away once more as Byakuran put him in a hold. "Like fuck he'll let me go out there and heal him. We've been reduced to a peanut gallery, and a shitty one at that," I told him, "and all we can do right now is trust Tsuna and be there for him. Because," I said, my eyes lighting up as Tsuna's ring glowed brightly, the flame on his head stronger, "that's what families are for, right? Or, at least one of the things they do."

We watched, enamored, as the two emitted a bright intense light.

"This is unbelievable!" Kikyo shouted, holding up his arm to shield his eyes. "An exchange of Flames!"

"Not bad for Vongola," Bel noted, "he's not yielding!"

"This core power," Mukuro said, "is the real Sawada Tsunayoshi." I winced, my arm going up to cover my eyes as the light grew brighter.

"It's coming from Sawada and Byakuran's rings! The flames are layering!"

"What the hell's going on?"

"Resonance…?" Dino muttered.

"Ah!" I gasped, realizing that the barriers where enlarging. I threw Basil and Ryohei's arms over my shoulders and managed to jump away with them, having healed Gokudera enough for him to move on his own.

"Look!" Ryohei called, glancing over at an object approaching as I put him and Basil down, "Another one's heading this way!

"Someone's inside," Yamamoto pointed out.

"Uni!?"

"What is that child thinking?!" Levi said, "She's heading straight for Byakuran!"

"She's probably thinking 'why the fuck am I moving towards him?" I snapped at Levi, looking up at him from his perch. "I highly doubt that she had a choice in this matter!"

"Vongola rings, Mare Rings, and the Arcobaleno pacifiers…" Mukuro counted off, his eyes narrowing. "The Trinisette is about to come together. Are they gravitating towards one another because of the weight of the powerful flames?"

"That's not going to work!" I called as the others began attempting to stop the boundaries form working.

"Dammit!" Gokudera yelled, "we can't even get in! Even with so many of us here and Cloud's healing!"

"I've been waiting for you, Uni-chan," Byakuran greeted as she entered their field. "This is what happens when the powerful sky flames of the Trinisette come together. We finally have the stage all to ourselves. It's a special stage where only the sky's Trinisette can exist. Though, since I have no use for you anymore, Tsunayoshi-kun," he said, looking down at Tsuna in his hold, "I'll get rid of you now so that I can have the stage for Uni and myself."

"Stop!" Uni called out before Byakuran could move further.

"Don't you think it's a little late to ask me to stop?" he asked carefully. "You were the one that forced the Vongola to risk their lives to protect you, Uni. I'm sure you knew that their opponent would be me, whom they're be powerless against. You merely ran around blind like it was some tragic act, while increasing the number of victims. You're too selfish for your own good."

My stomach churned, and I became angry, hating that he would use such a low method to pull her down, and knowing that method would have worked all too easily on me.

"Perhaps you wanted to see great numbers of people fighting for your sake. Weren't you running out of curiosity, princess of the Arcobalenos?" Something under her caped shimmered. "What was that just now?"

"Ah-"

"You're hiding something inside your cape, aren't you?"

"No..." she said, "you mustn't yet…"

"Yet…?" Byakuran. Uni pulled her cape tighter, only for the pacifiers she had been hiding to fall out.

"Those…" Gokudera started, his eyes widening when he recognized them. "They're the pacifiers of the Arcobaleno!"

"Ah!" I looked over to see Reborn approaching on Fuuta's shoulder, with Ipin right behind him. I then looked back again as someone exclaimed.

"Things are appearing from the pacifiers!"

"The reconstruction of the Acrobaleno's bodies is about to begin," Reborn explained.

"Reconstruction?"

"In other words," the hitman continued. "They're reborn."

"Reborn?!"  
>"Do you mean to say the strongest infants of the world are reviving!?" Dino shouted. My heart jumped and I looked forward, Ipin running to me, throwing her arms around me as she came to a stop.<p>

"Does that mean!?" she asked, breathless, looking at the small figures forming in front of Uni.

"Master Fon!" I finished for her, happily, tearing up even, hugging her arms around me as well.

"That means Mammon is coming back too?" Bel asked.

"…Colonello," Lal Mirch breathed out.

"Is that so?" Byakuran asked dangerously, earning a fearful look from Uni.

"Does this mean…" Kikyo wondered out loud, "that Uni-sama had this in mind when she escaped…?"

"Yes," Mukuro answered, "In order to give the Arcobaleno time to revive after being killed by the Millefiore, she pleaded with Sawada Tsunayoshi to help her protect her comrade's pacifiers."

"B-But, I don't get it," Ryohei said, pushing himself up. "When Colonello and the other infants revive, what'll happen?!"

"If they return," Lal Mirch replied, "Then the order of the Trinisette in this generation, in other words, the order of your world, will be regained again, and above all," she added, "they're powerful! If Sawada and the fully revived Arcobaleno combine powers, they may be able to defeat Byakuran!

"That's true," he admitted, "there is no non-trinisette here to kill the Arcobaleno, and if they all revive now, it'll be troublesome. But from the looks of things, I'm guessing that it'll take at least another hour for them to revive." His eyes narrowed at Uni's reaction. "I've hit the mark," he said, hurting Tsuna further and then dropping him.

"Tenth!"

"Tsuna!"

"Sawada-san!" Uni called.

"No matter who should revive, I wouldn't lose, but it wouldn't be a waste of time, no? No one else can enter these boundaries. You're mine. Crying won't get you anywhere either," he added, noting her fearful expression. "The Arcobaleno won't defeat me for you."

"That's right," Reborn agreed. "The ones who'll defeat you aren't the Arcobaleno. It'll be my student, Tsuna."

"Did you say that Tsunayoshi-kun will defeat me?"

"That's right," Reborn reaffirmed.

"Haven't you been watching, Reborn-kun," Byakuran smiled, "Tsunayoshi-kun was just taken down by me?"

"Don't underestimate the strength of Tsuna's dying will," Reborn warned. "Besides, I'm not talking about whether you can win. Tsuna, you've got no other choice than to defeat Byakuran." Byakuran's laughter broke the silence that followed Reborn's statement.

"Heh…. Hahahaha! What a surprise! Your last resort at a time like this is to try and slap some fighting spirit into him?"

"This is my method," Reborn stated simply. "Listen, Tsuna. You're not the only one who's fighting a battle of dying will. Uni's sacrificing her life in order to return you all to a peaceful past!"

"Uncle Reborn…" Uni said softly, cradling the pacifiers.

"The revival of the Arcobalenos does more than bring back order to the world. It's the key to returning you to a peaceful past. And Uni intends to sacrifice her life to achieve that."

"Is that so?" Byakuran repeated.

"Uncle…" Uni said, obviously surprised, "Why do you know?"

"I guessed as much," he admitted. "You and your grandmother are two peas in a pod."

"Hmm," Byakuran hummed, seemingly not affected much by this news, "Then I must stop you from doing such a foolish thing. After all, Uni-chan's life exists for my sake? Come." Tsuna coughed and slowly pushed himself up.

"Haha," Byakuran laughed, "I can't believe Tsunayoshi-kun really woke up from your reproachful encouragement, Reborn-kun. You two really make an astounding team," he congratulated them.

"I won't," Tsuna choked out, hand Uni… over to you…" This earned another laugh from Byakuran.

"You're quivering! The body is so honest, don't you think? Yours remembers the fear of being beaten hollow. Haha, your quivering is almost contagious."

"This is bad," Dino pointed out, "Tsuna's dying will is waning… he can't fight like this!"

"How unlucky of you to wake up in a situation like this. Ah! But then again, I suppose your middle school years have been unlucky from the start, Tsunayoshi-kun. I know quite a lot about you," Byakuran admitted. "Not too long ago, you were merely a failure of a student who skipped school, and then an assassinator came along and told you, you were a candidate to become boss of a huge mafia group, which threw you into this scary world. Since then, despite hating conflicts, you've been forced to fight for the title of boss and such. Your biggest misfortune, however, is that you came to this generation. If you hadn't been brought here, you wouldn't have had to go through all of this. Don't you curse your own fate? Right?" Tsuna looked down, his face hidden. He looked up suddenly, resolved.

"No," he stated, "that's no exactly true…Well, the future is scary…and painful…and full of uncertainties. There's been very few times where I've felt happy since coming here… but, I feel as though I understand all that now... It's not about what's good or bad… everything that happens here… is a precious part of my life," he finished, shaking once more.

"You sure have an odd way of perceiving things," Byakuran inputted bluntly. "But I want you to think very carefully. If you die, that'll only be a way to comfort yourself". Byakuran moved for a large scale attack, then stopped.

"Mm, you're right," he said, acknowledging the outbursts from our group. "A mini white dragon through his heart should be enough."

"Ahh! W-wait!" Tsuna shouted, but Byakuran was suddenly behind him.

"Don't wanna," he said, smiling, striking Tsuna in the back, causing a spirt of blood from his chest.

"Tsuna!" Ipin yelled, clutching my arm tighter. The other's yells were dull as I watched his body fall to the ground, having to remind myself that he wasn't dead.

"Now, Uni-chan!" Byakuran called happily, turning to her. "Your knight in shining armor is gone."

"Ow…." Byakuran stiffened. "Owww!" Tsuna sat up, coughing violently. He pulled out a necklace from under his shirt.

"Th-this ring!" Tsun exclaimed. "It's Lancia's!"

"The ring blocked the attack?!"

"It's all true after all..." Tsuna realized, "everything has helped me in some way… nothing that has happened since I came to the future has been pointless. The bitter thing… the painful things… the fun things….it's because of everyone- that I'm here right now. All the things that I've found since coming here- the skills, and the weapons. None of it would have done any good if I'd been alone…it's because everyone was here, that I was able to achieve them. Would you call that unlucky?" he asked, a soft look in his eyes. "I wouldn't. The time I've spent with everyone… is a treasure to me. My flames... were born because of this world you've taken over. These are everyone's flames! The fact that you've hurt all those innocent people…. I'll make you regret it!" Tsuna finished, his flames shining brilliantly once more.

"The flames have been rekindled!" Basil shouted.

"However," Mukuro noted, referring to Byakuran, who was laughing once again.

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but you've solved nothing at all! The difference in our strengths hasn't changed since you collapsed."

"I wonder about that," a new voice sounded. I glanced around, noticing other voices coming out of the guardian's rings as well. "Decimo," the voice continued, Tsuna's ring lighting up, "I agree with your thoughts."

"Where are you?!" Byakuran looked around wildly. "Whose voice is that?!"

"I wish I could lend power to my true successor," the voice continued as the Vongola crest shown out of the ring. "But unfortunately, I can't."

"The crest!"

"Instead," Vongola Primo said, appearing in front of Tsuna, behind the crest, "I'll free you from those shackles."

"What kind of joke is this?" Byakuran asked, calmly smiling. "Who is that? That man next to you, Tsunayoshi-kun?"

"It's the Vongola's first generation boss," Uni said, "Vongola Primo!"

"Primo?" He repeated, then laughed. "Now is not the time for games. That's foul to program such an ancient ancestor to project at a time like this."

"He's not a projection," Uni argue, "I'm sure you can tell. This is something that could never happen inside the Trinisette, your Mare ring or my pacifier. The Vongola ring's 'Miracle of the Shield Dimension'. There is a song that has been etched in my memory since the day I was born: the sea knows no limit to it's vastness, shellfish live through the ages, inheriting their shapes, and the rainbow appears every now and then, only to fade away again. Mare means sea, Vongola means Shellfish and Arcobaleno means rainbow. Yes… this portrays the different skies of the Trinisette."

"The endless Mare is the horizontal dimensional axis. In other words, it lives across parallel worlds. The Vongola, which lives through generations, is a vertical dimensional axis, which means it lives from past to present, preserving tradition. And lastly, the Arcobaleno, which never stays in one place, it exists not as a line, but as points within the two dimensions. Just like Byakuran has the ability to share knowledge across parallel worlds, Sawada-san has inherited Vongola's own 'time'."

"Time…" Tsuna muttered, then exclaimed, "That's right, I remember!"

"Sorry, but I don't see any credibility to that story," Byakuran refused. "I didn't even have my Mare ring yet when I first became aware of parallel worlds."

"That's because," Uni explained, "You were chosen as the rightful heir of the ring, just like Vongola Primo."

"Now Decimo," Primo began again, "I shall remove those shackles."

"Shackles?!"

"Is that what he said?"

"The current form to the Vongola ring," Primo explained as the crest glowed brighter, "is only temporary. In order to preserve strict succession of the Vongola ring, it was divided into two between the boss and the outside adviser for protection."

"That's what happened during the battle with the Varia," Ryohei recalled.

"It split right down the middle," Gokudera said. "This is about, the half Vongola rings!"

"However, in order to sustain the division," Primo moved on, "There was a need to restrain the highest output of the flames, unlike the Mare rings and the Pacifiers of the Arcobaleno in the same Trinisette… There is no need for that anymore," Primo declared, the light now coming from Tsuna's ring, "for now I know that you'll understand the true meaning of the ring and my will."

"This is the original Vongola Ring?!" Tsuna asked, gazing at his reformed ring in amazement.

"Decimo," Primo acknowledged, putting a hand around Tsuna's shoulder, "give that Mare boy what he deserves." And with that, he disappeared.

"Haha! What a fool of ancestor you have!" Byakuran commented before he was blown forward suddenly. I blinked, narrowing my eyes to see that Tsuna had moved behind him.

"Woah?"

"What just happened!?"

"Hmm…" Byakuran looked down as Tsuna from where he had been thrown to the top of the barrier, "It looks like it's become a bit more proficient," he said, pushing himself towards Tsuna. Tsuna called Nuts to him, using his cape as a shield against Byakuran's dragon. Tsuna attacked again, using his burning axel. Byakuran brought his hands together once more, using his white applause.

"I've only shown eighty percent of my power so far," he said smugly.

"I've only used half," Tsuna responded, then appeared behind Byakuran, hitting him with the same attack before he could counter. Tsuna struck him in the back, then spun him, before striking him harshly in the head, and tearing off his wings. Byakuran was sent hurtling to ground as Tsuna set fire to the once glorious wings.

"Byakuran-sama's wings!"

"What an incredible…" Mukuro started.

"Strength," I completed for him, smiling. "That's our Tsuna."

"What's wrong, Byakuran?" Tsuna asked, "Are you nothing without your wings?" The dust cleared, showing Byakuran standing.

"You're amazing, Tsunayoshi-kun," he applauded, looking up at Tsuna. "You're the only one of all the parallel worlds that had managed to make me spit out blood! I'm so happy!" He cried again, giving me a sinking feeling as I'm reminded of what happens next. "I never thought this day would come! What am I happy about, you ask…? For the first time in my life," he cried, wings of what seemed to be black blood spirting from his back. "I'm able to fight with all my body's power!" I grimaced, and shifted Ipin, her head buried in my shoulder so she couldn't see.

"You won't be able to win against me, just because your appearance has changed," Tsuna warned him.

"Haha, who said it was just my appearance? It's time you stopped," Byakuran said, shooting forward, "playing games!" Tsuna blocked him, then delivered a punch to his face. This sent Byakuran reeling back, until the wings themselves morphed in dragons. Tsuna dodged them easily, reaching Byakuran once more.

"Is that all you've got?" Tsuna asked. "I've only just gotten started."

"Ha! Then this is only the start of the start for me!" His wings jerked again, this time, breaking off into weapons. Tsuna looked over, startled, realizing something.

"Crap! It'll fall on Uni!" However, they bounced, ineffectively off of a large orb that appeared around Uni, shielding her form harm.

"She blocked it with flames!" Basil shouted.

"The dispensing of flames into the pacifier," Byakuran started, "has really begun… you're really going to do this, aren't you, Uni…? You're going to sacrifice your life for these pacifiers!"

"Uni?!" Tsuna called. Her head remained bowed, eyes closed in concentration. "Wait, Uni!" Tsuna called over the outbursts of the others in our group. "There's no reason for you to sacrifice yourself for the Arcobaleno!"

"I must," she told him softly, "their revival is crucial in order to return you all to a peaceful past. And in turn, it will save many lives as well… the time has finally come for me to be able to make good of my powers… this is the only chance I can take.. and my destiny, which I cannot escape from."

"Uni!" Tsuna yelled again, as Byakuran shot forward.

"Do you think you're allowed to die, without my permission?!" Tsuna instantly moved to meet him, intercepting him.

"I won't hand Uni over to you!" He said defiantly.

"You've interfered with my plan one too many times," Byakuran snarled, "if you intend to stand between us, then I'll have to kill you first!" He kicked Tsuna away, but the don came back almost immediately, sending the two crashing to the ground right next to Uni.

"We have to destroy the barrier," Dino said, "regardless of what Uni intends to so, it's dangerous for her to stay there!" Ipin bit her bottom lip and shifted beside me. I glanced over at Mukuro, sharing a knowing look as they tried to damage the barrier.

"But," Gokudera called, using his box weapon to attack it, "That barrier won't even budge!"

"It seems like you were serious, when you said it was only the start," Tsuna commented as the two continued their clash.

"I could say the same for you, Tsunayoshi-kun," Byakuran shot back, "I never expected you to last this long."

"But the one who'll take Uni-chan will be…" he trailed off, noticing Uni, below them.

"What's going on?" Dino asked. "Her flames are growing smaller."

"Maybe," Byakuran guess, "she's fearing death?"

"I wouldn't be surprised, even if she were," Reborn admitted. "Though she's the princess of the Arcobaleno's, she's only a kid."

"It's alright, Uni!" Tsuna called to comfort her, "Let's think of another way around this!"

"I'm sorry," she replied, "I'll be fine… there is no other way." Her flames strengthened, enveloping her once more. "Thanks you… everyone."

"Okay," Basil called, moving my attention towards him. "Now!"

"The flames of all the box weapons have merged within the rain dolphin! It's the combination system of box weapons!" Futa yelled.

"That might be powerful enough to break the barrier," Reborn noted.

"Now, Alphin!" Basil cried, as he ran forward as well. "Dammit, it's not working! It's only making small holes!"

"That's good enough for me!" A figure yelled, entering the barrier quickly, and falling to his knees before Uni. "Hey, princess," Gamma greeted, pushing himself to stand.

"Gamma!"

"I finally get to see you, only to have you slip away again. That's not fair, is it? Won't you use my flames too?" He stepped forward, until he was embracing her. Her eyes were wide from shock and she cried into his chest. "Do you remember what you whispered in my ear long ago? I still haven't given you an answer. Come on," he said, gently chiding her crying. "That's not the face to show at a time like this. That's now what your mother taught you."

For that moment, seeing her smile, I felt touched myself, a warm feeling moving through me. And then, just as quick, they were gone; their clothes, and the pacifiers falling to the ground where they once stood.

"Gamma! Uni!" Tsuna screamed, shattering the shocked silence. He moved quickly to their belongings, picking up the pacifiers gently.

"The Arcobaleno aren't reviving!" Fuuta shouted, only to be hushed by Reborn.

"No," he stated, calming him, "the flames should have been properly absorbed. It'll take a little more time."

"Hey, you!" Byakuran addressed Tsuna, clearly losing his mental state of mind. The black wings trembled, splattering on the ground beneath him. What have you done? You killed the final piece of the puzzle that I'd been searching so long for… you put all my efforts to waste. My dream to awaken the Trinisette and make this world far greater than any dimension… is ruined all because of your little friendship games… do you know…" he trailed off, then screamed suddenly. "What this means?!" Suddenly, a strong force emitted from Tsuna, sending Byakuran back.

"Who do you think it was that killed Uni?" Tsuna asked. "Because you made this world the way it is… Uni… died! I won't forgive you," Tsuna yelled, turning towards Byakuran, his flame burning brighter than ever, "Byakuran!"

"You won't forgive me?" He repeatedly blankly, then laughed maniacally. "What nonsense! You're a joke of a human being! I'd understand if you saw value in her as a powerful device! After all, Uni was an item that I need in order to become an invincible god! But to see her as a woman of all things! I can only be a momentary intoxication of hormones that you'd think could oppose me with humanism! It's that's your answer to live obediently trapped inside the human society," he cried, the black ink of his wings coming off of his hands and legs, securing him to the ground. "Hypocrisy could never win against the ugly desires of human! That's how this world is made!"

"Roots are growing out of Byakuran's legs!" Basil called.

"He's stabilizing his body?" Kikyo noted, "He means to put an end to this!" Tsuna shifted, placing himself in a familiar stance.

"Tsuna's gonna counter with his X burner!"

"You really ruined everything for me!" Byakuran continued, preparing his attack. "That doll with the pacifiers was my ultimate toy!"

"Don't you dare insult Uni anymore than you already have!" Tsuna cried. "You don't even deserve to say her name!"

"Agh!"

"The barrier is breaking!"

"Die!" Byakuran screamed.

"Byakuran!" I grabbed Ipin, and moved back with her, along with the others. I swung us around a tree, holding Ipin to me as a strong blast shook the ground, and a gust of wind blew against us. I blinked, looking at Ipin, who blinked back. She pensively peeked around the tree.

"Byakuran-sama!" I let Ipin go and we ran towards the clearing.

"We… won!"

"Yeah! We've done it, we won!" I bypassed the overs, running towards Tsuna. He barely caught me as I barreled into him, the first to give him a hug.

"Cloud!" He said, falling into me almost instantly, breathing heavily, the flame on his head sizzling out. "Are you guys okay?" He asked weakly, looking around at the others who gathered.

"You're definitely _not_ okay," I shot back at him, trying to put on a stern face, but ended up smiling anyway, happy he was okay.

"You did well, Tsuna," Reborn said, as I lowered him down, deeming him too injured to move.

"But," he said softly, regret in his voice, "Gamma, and Uni…" My smile dropped as I was reminded of the losses. I glanced over, seeing Gamma's brothers loudly mourning their death, and Haru and Kyoko crying softly into Bianchi.

"It's not just Gamma and Uni," Tsuna went on, gripping my shoulders tightly, "this battle has hurt so many people!" Tsuna choked out, not even being able to look me in the eye.

"Augh!" We looked over, startled, as Levi roughly threw Kikyo on the ground. Bel snickered as the Varia looked down on him.

"Your boss went and kicked the bucket," he chided, grinning snidely and brandishing his knives.

"It's your turn next," Levi told him.

"If you have any particular method you wanna die," Fran inputted blankly, "we're all ears."

"Wait, what are you doing?!" I grabbed Tsuna as he shot forward, almost falling in the process. "We don't need any more damage!"

"Why do you care about this scum?" Levi asked, glaring down at Kikyo. "This is a creature who only knows how to kill!"

"You're wrong," Irie stated, hobbling over to us on crutches. "They were all once normal humans…"

"Eh?!"

"What?"

"Irie Shouichi…" Kikyo spat, glaring at the man.

"At the time when Millefiore was gathering up strong forces, I was there to check every country's mafia, military, and assassin, but I never saw them," Irie continued. "Which mean that they were normal people that weren't listed in the register…" Kikyo laughed hollowly, drawing attention t himself once more.

"Noraml people…" he muttered darkly. "In parallel worlds, we were all humans that reigned over our worlds! But in this world, things were different due to misfortune. Byakuran-sama was the one who changed our weaknesses into strengths!"

"Shut up." I didn't look away as Xanxus shot him in the head.

"Xanxus!"

"Shut up!" He snapped again.

"It'll be alright," Lussarua reassured us. "I'll keep him alive." Tsuna wavered in my arms once more.

"Whoah, there," I said lightly, propping him against me.

"Cloud…" He said, then frowned, "you… you were hurt too, and Dino-san… so many people were hurt in this battle. Yamamoto's dad and people from other parallel worlds have died…." Tsuna glanced at me, then looked away, not even having to say it. "We've won, but everything is so messed up… was there any meaning behind this victory?

"Of course there was, dammit!" I perked up, recognizing the voice immediately. "You all did well, dammit!"

"That voice!" Lal cried out, looking towards the pacifiers.

"Found you Mammon," Bel chided, his face lighting happily.

"Master!" Ryohei yelled.

"Colonello…"

"The Arcobaleno… have finally revived!"

"Master!" Ipin cried, tears welling up in her eyes as she fell to her knees beside me. I breathed out shakily as well, smiling. Fon looked over at us softly, only making my emotional state worse.

"To see both my students both grown and beautiful," he commented, smiling and bowing his head slightly, "it only makes me happier to know that you're still growing and strengthen yourselves with every day that passes."

"You're all late," Reborn said bluntly.

"What did you say Reborn!" Skull yelled, only to add a small, "senpai," when Reborn gave him a sharp look.

"Chill, Skull," Colonello reprimanded.

"Everyone is really an infant," Tsuna noted shakily, staring at them with disbelief.

"We all know the situation," Colonello continued, holding Uni's glowing pacifier, "Uni communicated with us through the flames that went through our pacifiers."

"Uni?" Tsuna asked, as I helped him to stand.

"Yes," Fon answered, smiling as I helped Tsuna, "Uni also informed us of what influence Byakuran's defeat would have on the world. By Byakuran being defeated and the Mare rings losing their power, all the damage in the parallel worlds caused by the Mare rings would be erased from the past."

"In other words," Colonello stepped in," All the deeds done by Byakuran would disappear without a trace, dammit!"

"Does that mean that Yamamoto's dad, Cloud and the people killed by the Millefiore will come back?!"

"Their deaths will be erased too, I bet," Colonello confirmed. I began to smile as well, overjoyed with the thought of the people I love in this future not having to return to what I came to, along with the others, like Zhanna and her family, receiving the loved ones they had lost. But then, Fon gave me a look, and a cold feeling settled in my stomach.

"But what'll we do if someone like Byakuran appears again…" Tsuna asked, snapping me back into the conversation. "…and they try to use the mare rings?

"Uni sacrificed her life," Fon answered, looking away from me, "in order to prevent that from happening."

"Huh?"

"With the aid of the Arcobaleno's revival, Uni wanted her 'Flame of Life' to be undying," Fon continued, "this way, she should be able to seal away the mare rings in the past, or in other words, your time, forever."

"Is it possible… to seal the mare rings in the past…?"

"Uni entrusted that task to us," Colonello said.

"She sacrificed her life in order to create eternal peace," Fon finished.

"Uni did say you would be able to return to 'a peaceful past'," Reborn reminded them. Tsuna shifted beside me, looking at the sky gratefully.

"Now it's your turn to make your wish come true," Irie said, coming up to us.

"Ah- That's right! Let's go home to the past!" Tsuna yelled out. I laughed alongside the group, acting happy and whole, but all the while, the look my master gave me still haunting me. After making sure Tsuna had someone to lean on (or just passing him off to an already healed Gokudera, who was more than happy to take him) and sending Kashi off to find Jian, I jogged over to Fon, who was talking softly to a sniffling Ipin. The other Arcobaleno's had dispersed, Colonello talking to Lal Mirch, Verde discussing something with Irie, and Skull running behind the group that had gathered a ways ahead of us, obviously celebrating.

"I'm just so happy," she cried, hiccuping again, "that you'll both be back." I narrowed my eyes, Fon's eyes looking away slightly, and Mammon turning away from me. Bel frowned as he walked up, the Varia behind him as they came to greet Mammon. Fon caught my eyes, and I sighed, scratching the back of my head, and tuning slightly, not wanting to say this in front of Ipin, but knowing that it had to be done. Mukuro stood nearby with Dayita, ceasing their discussion to glance over at me.

"My future self isn't coming back, is she?" I asked quietly. Mammon stiffened, not knowing how to deal with this. Fon sighed sadly, and shook his head.

"No," he replied. "She's not." Ipin looked between us, her eyes wide, a wave of emotions running through them.

"What?" she breathed out, her lip quivering. "But why? You said that all the death-"

"Uni couldn't reach her," Mammon cut her off bluntly. "I'm guessing it has something to do with the fact she's unable to see illusions as well."

"So everyone else gets to return from the fucking dead," Squalo growled, glaring around the group, not being able to find someone to blame for this," but she doesn't?" Bel frowned, barely glancing over at me. Mukuro stepped forward, putting a hand on my shoulder. Fran just stared at me blankly, not knowing how to respond.

"Unfortunately," Fon said, sighing sadly and moving to put a reassuring hand on Ipin's leg, who was looking down, tears streaming down her face as she cried silently. "That's the case." I sighed, almost angrily and crossed my arms.

"I can't say I didn't expect this," I said quietly, where only Mukuro could hear. "Nobody tell Dino," I said, louder, so everyone could hear. I looked over at him, laughing happily and clapping Tsuna on the back, causing the young boy to wince. "I have to tell him myself," I said, looking away from him, happy, knowing that wouldn't last.

"But, for now," I said, turning back to smile at the group, "let's just act, happy, yeah? At least, while I'm still around…" Dayita laughed, and wrapped her arms around my neck as she pounced on me. I swayed, then steadied myself, sighing in defeat.

"I'm going to miss that cheery disposition of yours, Cloud-chan," she cooed, then kissed my cheek. Mukuro stepped away, annoyed.

"Okay, watch the bubble," I said, wriggling away from Dayita's touchy hold on me, stepping towards the Varia. Squalo glared down at me, fronting irritation instead of other, unpleasant feelings. Xanxus clicked his tongue, then stepped towards me.

"You're a lot of trouble, you know that, brat?" He sneered, staring down at me. I laughed lightly, and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm aware," I admitted, as he huffed and turned away, striding.

"Let's go," he said, acknowledging the Varia, "I've had enough of these pieces of shit," he said, glancing over at the other group in irritation. Levi, not even looking back at me, followed his boss. Lussaria frowned, looking up from where he had been healing Kikyo. He walked over to me, and kissed me on the forehead, sighing sadly as he leaned away.

"Take care of yourself, darling," he told me, then picked up Kikyo once more, following the others. I turned to Bel, Mammon floating next to him.

"You gonna be okay?" I asked him. He snickered and ruffled my hair.

"Ushishishi, of course, princess," he said, "I'm a prince after all."

"Don't screw up and kill yourself again," Mammon said bluntly. "It's annoying." Bel reached, taking my hand and kissing it.

"This is goodbye, princess," he said, softer. I almost said, 'See you', but realized that would be a lie. He would never see me again; any version of me. Not this Bel, or this Xanxus, or Lussaria. This was their final goodbye.

"It was nice," I admitted, blinking, looking away, "to see how happy she made you guys," I said, once again looking over at Dino.

"Yeah," Bel said, following my gaze. "It was nice. I'm glad," he stated, folding his arms behind his head, "you came though. My last conversation with her isn't an argument, with you here," he said. "It's a lot happier."

"I'm glad I came here to," I said slowly, thinking back, to Tsuna's words during the battle, to my uncertainty and anger when coming here, everything that I've lived through in the future coming back to me, and I realized that it was true; I was glad that I came here.

"I'm glad too."

* * *

><p>"You beat that mermaid bitch?"<p>

"Bluebell," I corrected him, trying not to think about her death. "And it was circumstantial," I explained to him, ignoring him wincing as I healed his arm.

"Master explained it on the way here," Fran inputted from where he had been sitting, leaning against a tree. "Her box weapon was best suited to go against her, and it would give us a lot of flames to heal everyone, which, it did. Yay us." I rolled my eyes at his explanation, completely bypassing the depth of the conversation.

Jian had returned shortly after the Varia left, with the exception of Squalo and Fran. I immediately set to work on healing everyone in the group completely, having an abundance of flames to work with. Now, as I was healing Squalo, who insisted on being last, saying he was fine, Jian was once again the size of a small child. Fran poked him in the forehead with a stick again, and the panda went after it with his paws, catching it, only to have it gently torn from his grip once more, starting the process over.

"Hey, guys!" I looked down, finished healing Squalo's arm as Dino ran over to us. "We're all about ready to head back," Dino said happily, his mood drastically lighter. I managed to look over at him, but almost flinched when he smiled warmly at me. Squalo gave me a look, glancing in between us. He scowled and shot up, grabbing Fran's hat on his way, dragging him up. Slightly startled, Fran managed to grab Jian as well, holding the small panda in his arms as he was dragged away.

"I've got to punish you, Fran!" Squalo yelled, creating a rather bad excuse, "Over there, alone!" Dino blinked, watching them go.

"What was that about?" He said, scratching the back of his head, and turning to me again. "I guess they can find their way back on their own. Anyways, the others are already leaving, and I came back to let you guys know…." He trailed off, seeing my expression. "Cloud?" he asked, becoming worried, "what's wrong?"

"We need to talk," I started, looking at the ground, rubbing my shoulders.

"About what?" He asked carefully, picking up on my mood easily. I took a deep breath, and looked up, deciding, knowing that I needed to look him in the eyes telling him this. He deserved that much.

"She's not coming back, Dino," I told him bluntly. His eyes widened, instantly understanding what I meant. His face fell and he looked down, his entire persona from earlier gone. "Uni couldn't reach me- her," I corrected quickly. "Uni couldn't reach her, and we don't know why." I walked to him, and paused, before I wrapped my arms around him in a tight embrace.

"I'm sorry, Dino," I said into his jacket. "I really am." He hesitated, then returned the hug.

"It's fine, Cloud," he said sadly. I closed my eyes tightly, and shook my head, without saying a words.

No, I thought. It wasn't.

* * *

><p>I walked into the unfamiliar hallways of the Vongola base, alone and with a heavy mind. Dino had brought me to an entrance and parted ways, saying he had something he needed to do.<p>

"I'll be back before you leave," he said before he left. "I promise." What he went to do, I didn't know, and didn't pursue to find out. I was angry at myself, I could admit. It was my fault that my future-self couldn't come back.

_'No, it's not.'_

I blinked, stopping in my tracts at the sound of the voice.

"Hannah…" I muttered quietly, confused. "Why-"

"Kumo."

"Hm?" I looked over, seeing Kyoya walking towards me, tonfas out. "Kyoya?" I wondered, "Ah, Dino must have brought me through your side of the base."

"That reminds me," Kyoya said calmly, raising his tonfas, his eyes glinting. "I need to punish you."

"….huh?" I had enough sense to start running, despite my confusion.

"Come one Kyoya, what the fuck?!" I yelled back, running through the base, having no idea where I was going. "This is the first time we've actually talked in the future and you attack me? Not even a proper hello?!" I slowed, almost slamming into a door, and quickly pushing the button, multiple times. "Open, open, open, open!" I muttered, looking back to see Kyoya gaining on me, smirking triumphantly. I almost knocked Kusakabe down as the door opened, him happening to be on the other side.

"Kumo- ah!" He wisely stuck to the wall, as I moved past quickly, seeing Kyoya behind me.

"Sorry, Tetsu!" I called back, continuing to move, knowing that I would be dead if I stopped. I scowled, seeing three people in front of me as I rounded a corner, blocking the hall completely. "Tsuna, get down!"

"Eh?!" I scowled as Tsuna only barely turned in response. With my speed I reached him before he could react and quickly grabbed his shoulders, vaulting myself over top of him, almost kicking Yamamoto and Gokudera on each side of him with my legs, if not for them ducking.

"Sorry, Tsuna!" I yelled back, easily landing and immediately retaining the same speed as before. "Life or death situation here!"

"Cloud?!" Tsuna shrieked. "What are y-GAH!"

"Tenth!" I didn't even look back, knowing Kyoya had simply knocked Tsuna out of his way, the poor guy.

"You've got to be kidding me!" I groaned, coming upon another door, frantically slamming the button again. Unfortunately for me, there was no one on the other side to open it, like Tetsu had been before. I cursed loudly in Russian, kicking the door roughly before turning to Kyoya. My eyes narrowed and I stepped forward to meet him, going under his swing. He met my first kick with his tonfa, blocking it, or at least, trying to. His eyes widened, having underestimated my strength as I brought his arm against the wall and grabbed the end of his weapon, wrenching it out of his hand. I pushed myself back, away from him and twirling my new weapon, weighing it, becoming familiar with it in my hand. His eyes narrowed, obviously annoyed I had unarmed him.

"Why exactly are you punishing me?" I questioned, tensed, deciding now was a good time to ask, since he wasn't, you know, hunting me down anymore.

"It's your fault he's like that, isn't it?" he stated simply, straightening himself. "The Bronco."

"Dino?" I asked, confused. Then I realized, frowning, lowering the tonfa I was holding, that Kyoya must have noticed Dino's change in mood when he came here. And he noticed that it was my fault. "Yeah," I admitted, startling him by tossing his tonfa back to him, "that is my fault." He caught it easily, and was about to attack once more before a voice stopped him.

"This won't do at all," Fon said placidly as he entered our end of the hallway, Ipin behind him, "you two fighting."

"Master," I turned slightly, to greet him.

"You…" Kyoya said, narrowing his eyes as Fon hopped up on my shoulder.

"Let's cease this meaningless fighting," Fon suggested, looking between us. "It's your last full day in the future, after all." I looked over at Ipin, who was blushing heavily, looking at Hibari. He glanced at me once more.

"You've trained," he noted, then looked at my wrists and ankles, "and you're still wearing the weights," he said with aggravation. "It's still annoying to fight you, though," he stated, brushing past us, and turning the corner. Fon sighed as he left.

"Abrasive as always," Fon commented, smiling softly.

"The younger Kyoya-san," Ipin muttered, looking after him, "is a lot angrier."

"You mean he calms down in the future?" I asked tiredly, having a hard time imagining it after that encounter. I thought Kyoya's days of chasing me was over, but he had proved me wrong.

"Eventually," Fon told me, moving on. "I'm glad we found you." I hummed, looking over at him. "Before we left," he finished.

"You're leaving?"

"To travel," Fon explained. "I'm taking Ipin with me, to look after her once more, since you will not be around to do so." I looked back to Ipin, just in time to catch her as she hugged me.

"I'm going to miss you, jiě jie!" I hugged her back, smiling softly.

"I'm glad I got to see you, Ipin," I told her, holding her back to look at her face, flushed and tearful, "It's makes me happier knowing that this is what you'll grow to be."

"And, she continues to grow day by day," Fon added. "We should go," He told Ipin, jumping down from my shoulder. "After all," he told me, smiling up fondly. "You've got your own master and little sister to return to."

* * *

><p>"You're fucking with me?" I shook my head, frowning. She scowled on the screen. "Damn, when she dies, she commits." I blinked, barely registering her joke. "What?" she asked, crossing her arms, "can't stand a little morbid humor?"<p>

"That's little more than morbid, Zhanna," I told her, almost offended.

"It's not like you're the one who died," she shot at me. "You're haven't kicked the bucket yet, right? Fuck no, you haven't!" she answered before I could even open my mouth.

"Listen, little horse," she said seriously, leaning back on the couch she was sitting on, placing her arms casually on the back of it, "don't even fucking worry about us in the future. If you're going to worry about anything, worry about your present. It's not like you can fix her not coming back, so mind your own fucking business. Yeah, it fucking sucks that she died, but it would've been even worse if you got creamed too. Appreciate your own fucking life," Zhanna finished, "and don't worry about hers, especially since it ended."

I blinked, registering her words, almost needing to be bluntly told this.

"We'll be fine," she told me, seeing my look. "You've already died once; it's not like she's dying again. She's already gone," Zhanna said, reaching into her pocket to receive a pack of cigarettes, pulling one out and sticking it in her mouth before securing a lighter from her other pocket. "And there's not one fucking thing you can do to change that."

I sighed in defeat, seeing the dense truth to her words. I scrunched my nose as she lit the cigarette in her mouth.

"I see you found a lighter," I noted dryly.

"Not mine," she admitted. "It's your shitty prince's actually."

"Bel?" I pegged, sitting up a bit. I was aware that he smoked, even in my time line, but knew it to be a rare action for him, especially after the first time he tried smoking in front of me.

"He gave it to me," Zhanna recalled, "right before we left. Maybe I won't break this one like the last one…Anyways," she said, moving on, "what are you planning to do when you get back?"

"I was actually going to get you to help me with something," I admitted, "the past you, that is."

"Ah?" Zhanna said, blowing a stream of smoke.

"I'm going to look for Dayita when I get back," I began. "I want to go ahead a-"

"No," she said interrupting. "I can already tell you, my answer will be no. Fuck no, actually, if I know myself well enough," she elaborated. "Look, do us all a huge favor, and don't meet that bitch, okay?"

"But, I need her!" I said, almost too quickly. Zhanna raised an eyebrow.

"Why the fuck do you need her?" I blinked, then shook my head.

"Not important," I said, "can't say." Zhanna huffed, and rolled her eyes at my response. "But, besides Dayita, I want to meet her brother as well."

"Do _yourself_ a favor, and definitely don't meet him," Zhanna said.

"He's a genius weapons maker, right?" I repeated the information I was told earlier. "I want to go ahead and meet them, so I can start working with them."

"Working with them?" Zhanna repeated. "Why are you so eager?"

"I want to be prepared," I said truthfully.

"What the fuck for?"

"The future."

"Did you not get it through your thick head?" She snapped at me, "I fucking told you to stop worrying ab-"

"Not this future," I quickly corrected, "you were right; there's nothing I can do about my future-self not coming back, so there's no point worrying about it," I summarized sadly. "I'm preparing for my new future," I told her, "and for that, Dayita and her brother could really help me."

"You're really set on finding them, aren't you?" Zhanna asked coolly. I nodded, determined. She sighed roughly, looking rather annoyed.

"Whatever," she concluded. "It's not like you can be stopped once you have your mind set. One of the annoying things about you." I smiled, letting out a small laugh.

"Thanks, Zhanna."

"Hm? For what?" her eyes narrowed. I shrugged, the thanks meant to be general.

"For being you," I concluded. "For being Zhanna." She barked out laughter, amused.

"You're not so bad yourself, you little shit."

* * *

><p>"Ah," Dayita breathed out, leaning in the doorway of the room I had spent the night in the Vongola base. "It's so sad to see you go, especially since she's not coming back," she admitted, walking over to me.<p>

"Yeah," I breathed out, nodding my head.

"However," she said slyly, crossing her arms in a sultry manner "I understand that you are going to seek me out when you get back." I blinked, then narrowed me eyes at her.

"At this point, should I even ask?"

"Probably not," she said with a small laugh, bringing one hand up to the side of her face. "If I'm not mistaken, I did not meet you until I was about 20 or so," she guessed, looking up thoughtful. "That would have made you 18? Yes?" She nodded. "Yes. And you're hoping to meet before then? May I," her eyes narrowed, "ask why?"

"I'd prefer," I admitted, "to tell you when I get back. And, I want to meet Varick." She clapped her hands together, laughing.

"And Varick will be _so_ happy to meet you sooner," she cooed, smiling widely. "He absolutely adores you, dear!"

"Okay?" I said, not knowing how to respond. "Should I be worried about that?"

"Only a little," she admitted, offhandedly. "Well," she put a hand on her hip, breathing in, "I should get going."

"Ah, Dayita-" She shushed me, her vibrant clothes swaying with her as she turned back to me.

"You don't need to say goodbye," she told me, winking. "After all, we'll see each other again, even if this is the last time I'll set my eyes on you, Cloud Chiavarone." With a blow of a kiss, and another wink, she was gone.

* * *

><p>"Hm?" I walked around the corner, seeing Chrome and M.M., the older woman glaring at the younger. Chrome, however, seemed oblivious to this, as she was looking up lovingly at Mukuro, who was the first to notice me enter.<p>

"Ah, Little Chiavarone," he greeted, striding down the steps to reach our level, motioning for Ken and Chikusa to move on as he did.

"Here are your clothes," I said, moving to M.M. as he made his way down. She took the bag angrily, and with one last glare at Chrome, she walked away. Chrome blinked was we watched her leave without saying another word.

"Are you ready to return to the past?" Mukuro chuckled.

"I haven't exactly said all my goodbyes yet," I admitted, thinking of Dino.

"No, I suppose you haven't," he hummed, narrowing his eyes. "Before you leave, however," he stated, glancing at Chrome, who looked between us, not knowing what to do. "I want to remind you of a promise you made to me, almost ten years ago, I believe." I blinked, not knowing at first, what he meant. With one more glance at Chrome, however, I got the hint.

"I keep my promises, Mukuro," I reminded him.

"Not always," he shot back, smirking. "You're known for not following orders well after all." I puffed my cheeks, and looked away, being reminded of that once more. "Which reminds me," he noted, "there's someone who's waiting for their goodbye as well."

"Hm?" I hummed, tilting my head.

"I'm offended, Nee-chan," Fran drawled, walking into the area, "you've forgotten about me already."

"Ah, Fran!" I smiled, turning towards him.

"I leave you to your goodbyes," Mukuro said, turning to leave.

"You're not going to say goodbye?" I questioned.

"Of course not," he called back, without even turning. "I have no need for such frivolous things." I huffed, almost sadly.

"You don't always have to act like an asshole, you know," I taunted, smiling as he left.

"Kufufufu…" he said, chuckling once more, "but isn't it fun to?"

* * *

><p>"Where are we going, Fran?"<p>

"To see someone," he answered helpfully, as we walked through the woods. I sighed and shook my head, used to his blunt attitude.

"Can the past me still call you nee-chan?" He asked suddenly.

"Sure," I said shrugging. "It'll be more fitting, actually," I figured, "since you'll actually be younger than me."

"Ah," he said, as if just realizing it himself, "you're right." I held back a frown, not having the heart to tell him that he won't remember the memories he received.

"Maybe I'll remember you," he said, starling me, "when you meet me in your time." I looked over at him. "I know you, Nee-chan," he sighed. "You've got to get better at controlling your expressions. You suck at it."

"And besides," he continued, "I guess it doesn't matter if the present me remembers this or not. Because I will," he said, shrugging. "And that's what matters, right?" I smiled softly, moving to link arms with him as we walked.

"You make a good little brother, Fran," I told him.

"I guess you're a pretty good big sister, too."

"…you guess?"

"Brats these days! When I was your age, I was a hell of an assassin!"

"Ah!" I rushed forward, dragging Fran with me, who groaned in protest. "Squalo!"

"Hm?" He looked over at me, leaning over from Yamamoto as he finished telling him something.

"Voooi, brat!" He yelled, glaring over at me. I suddenly regretted rushing to meet him as he stalked over. "You better not being a fucking idiot again and get yourself killed! I'll butcher you myself if you do!"

"Haha! Squalo that doesn't make any sense!"

"Shut it, brat!" he snapped at Yamamoto, causing me to laugh. Letting go of Fran's arm, I hugged Squalo, quickly pecking him on the cheek.

"Thanks for everything, Squalo," I said happily. He became flustered, not knowing how to deal with this.

"IT WAS NOTHING!" He yelled, looking away from me as I released him.

"Don't I get a kiss as well, Nee-chan?" Fran complained. Yamamoto laughed, coming over to stand beside me.

"Like hell you do, you piece of scum," Squalo thrashed, grabbing Fran's arm and dragging him to the edge of the cliff we were standing before. "Voi! Stay out of trouble you shitty brats!" He yelled back at us, looking at us one more time before jumping over with the illusionist. "Bye!"

"Yeah!" Yamamoto ran up to the edge. "Thanks for everything!" He smiled, turning back to me. He poked me in the cheek, laughing. "Clooooud?" he said, drawing out the name. "Is it really you? Not an illusion?" He teased as I latched onto his arm, per usual.

"Promise," I told him, as we began to stroll back.

"We haven't been able to talk, have we?" Yamamoto noted, "With the battle and everything. You were even too busy to talk when you were healing everyone."

"I guess they all know now," I laughed lightly, thinking back to when only a few people were aware of my unnatural sun flames.

"It's nice, isn't it?" he asked, "for it to be over. We can be happy again."

"Yeah…" I muttered, then thought back to Dino.

"Hm?" He stopped walking, looking down at me. "Is something wrong?"

"…. My future self isn't coming back," I told him. He blinked confused.

"That's… awful," he admitted, not even asking why (which I appreciated greatly, not having to be reminded again that it was my fault).

"I told Dino yesterday," I confided, "but I haven't seen him since. I've been going around, tying loose ends."

"That's nice of you," Yamamoto complimented with a kind smile, "to do that for her."

"…. I haven't really thought about it like that," I said, thinking. "I had really been doing it for me-" Yamamoto shook his head.

"Nah, Cloud," he corrected me. "That, you going around to them, wasn't for you. You were thinking of them," he said, nodding in confirmation. "You're too kind to do it for yourself, Cloud. You're just like that."

"She is, isn't she?" We glanced over, about to reach one of the base's entrances, only to see Dino approach us, a bag in his hand.

"Dino," I breathed out. Yamamoto looked in between us, then bowed slightly.

"I'll give you guys some space," he said as he moved away, back into the base.

"You're really too nice for your own good, Cloud," Dino said, walking over to me.

"It's funny; the more people say that the less I believe it," I said, titling my head as I looked up at him.

"You should believe it," he said, giving me a slight smile, "but, I guess that if you did, you might not be 'Cloud' anymore."

"You've changed," I noted, "your eyes. You don't look at me the same."

"No," he admitted, "I don't. You're not my sister," he said, causing me to frown, "at least, not the one I knew. She was you at one point, but she changed, grew sadder. Although she was helping people, I think," he said, almost hesitating to continue, "she knew she was going to die. She accepted it. I realized this, when I saw Uni…." He trailed off, not having to finish his sentence. "I didn't understand then, and I still don't know," he disclosed, "why she did what she did. But, I do know that she believed that she had to do it, and," he voiced, looking at me, "you believe the same thing." I wanted to look away, ashamed, but I simply couldn't break eye contact. "Maybe my sister died long ago," he went on, "when she accepted her death, even before I did. But now, with her gone, and coming to terms with that, I just need you to promise me one thing, Cloud."

"Please," he said, pleading, "don't change like she did. For his sake." His hand went to my cheek, and I closed my eyes. "Stay bright, and beautiful, and keep healing. Although, it can cause problems," he said, laughing a bit, "it makes you happy. And I want nothing more than for you to be happy."

"Dino…" I muttered, then moved forward suddenly, overcome with emotion. I hugged him tightly, knowing that this was our last goodbye, my last time seeing this Dino. "I promise. I won't break this one," I vowed, closing my eyes tighter. "I won't."

"He's lucky, your brother. He still has a bright, happy, beautiful sister to look after, no matter how much of a pain she can be." I choked out laughter, looking up at him. "I have some things to give you," he said, releasing me to reach into the bag he had brought. "Some of her things," he explained, causing my eyes to widen in surprise.

"Pictures, mostly," he admitted, "she got really into them when she was 17, for some reason," he said smiling at the memory, "But, some other things as well." He handed me the bag, and I looked inside, surprised to see a worn looking coat, along with a couple books, rings for battle and photographs. "Keep her box weapons and notebook as well," he told me. "You're the only one who can put them to good use after all."

"Dino, you shouldn't h-"

"I wanted to," he said seriously, then corrected himself, "needed to. These are yours. They rightfully belong to you. And besides," he said, his hand closing over mine, pushing the bag towards me, "I want you to look back on your time in the future, happy." I blinked up at him, and wiped my eyes, reminding myself that this is the last time I would see this Dino, and this was the last time he would see his sister, ever again.

"Believe me, Dino. I am happy."

* * *

><p>I fingered the fur hood of the coat, warmly smiling down at it, only to look up at the sound of Irie's voice.<p>

"Alright! Everyone here?" He called, looking over the group, and nodding. "I want everyone to leave their Vongola boxes here. Please remove them!" I frowned, hesitant to give up my box weapons.

"Don't worry," Verde said, causing me to look over at him. He walked over to me as the others were saying goodbye to their box weapons, and the other people gathered. "We're tweaking them to make sure they can be in the past, even making them compact. Although," he said with a hint of irritation, "yours were more difficult to work with, thanks to the complexity of your boxes, having to even contact _him_," he looked away, a venomous look on his face. He huffed, then turned back to me. "I will admit, I am slightly inconvenienced to see such an interesting test subject go, despite your idleness before my death. But, I do hope my past self continues working with you," he narrowed his eyes, sending a chill down my spine, "wouldn't you agree, Chiavarone?"

"Of course," I said coolly. "I wouldn't have been able to heal and come so far without you." He smiled confidently, my words pleasing him. I narrowed my eyes as he walked away, worried almost, uncomfortable with the scientist. I was reminded of my last encounter, back in the past, that ended on an ominous note, the scientist almost threatening to hold us there. Truthfully, I thought, thinking back, I didn't know what I would have done without Zhanna there. He surely would have tried something without the Russian's towering presence.

"Okay, we're starting the time warp!" Iria yelled over us, snapping me out of my thoughts. "The Arcobaleno will return once they're finished sealing the Mare rings of the past!" I looked down, smiling at Colonello and Mammon in front of me. "Now then… thank you… for everything!"

I closed my eyes, a grand light surrounding us, and suddenly feeling almost weightless. I felt an odd sensation, then weight on my hand. I wiggled it, smiling widely, knowing that it was Kashi and Jian in their new ring forms. Suddenly, I hit solid ground, and caught myself in a crouch. I blinked, getting used to the light and then looked around, my surroundings familiar.

"I'm home," I realized with surprise, looking up at the doors of the Chiavarone mansion, the steps merely a few feet away, right in front of me. I laughed once more, over joyed, pushing myself up, and running up the steps, shouting once more.

"I'm home!"

* * *

><p>"Miss?!" The elderly woman walked into the large room in a hurry, alarmed by the earthquake that rippled through the estate. "Miss?! Yita!" she snapped, seeing the teenager, kneeling on the floor, clutching her head. The elderly woman rushed to her side, kneeling as well to check on her.<p>

Dayita Koenig's eyes were wide, images, memories flashing through her head. She blinked, then glanced over at her Ayah, who was holding her shoulder in concern. Her eyes narrowed, and she pushed herself up, the old woman looking up at her in concern.

"I'm fine, Madhi," she assured her, smiling gorgeously, "more than that, actually," she corrected, growing more excited. "I'm elated! Enamored!" she said, spinning, and laughing, her clothes that were draped around her spinning beautifully with her body. She stopped suddenly, clapping her hands together.

"Cloud Chiavarone," she whispered, narrowing her eyes. "How exciting! How wondrous! Madhi," she snapped suddenly as the old woman pushed herself up, "prepare a gift; my usual," she said winking.

"I want to give my dear Cloud a proper welcome back from the future."

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: To Be Happy<strong>

"You have no happy pictures."

"…. What?" Kusakabe glanced over, intrigued by the girl's statement. Hibari stood beside her, raising one eyebrow and watching intently as she looked at a familiar picture.

"Then again," she said, muttering, almost to herself, "you don't have that many pictures in the first place."

"Why does that concern you?" Hibari asked, deeming the conversation irrelevant and moving on. She looked one more time at the picture in question, then proceeded to follow him out the door, Kusakabe right behind them.

"It's sad, isn't it?" She asked as Kusakabe closed the door of the Hibari residence. "No one is smiling in any of the pictures in your house," she continued, daintily scrunching her nose. "Pictures should be happy. It's a pain to look at unhappy ones," she added sadly, speaking from experience, Kusakabe was sure.

"Why," Hibari asked again, repeating himself, "does this concern you?" She looked towards him, with a sly look in her eyes. He resisted the urge to lean back, having seen that look before.

"I'm going to fix it," she informed him, leaning forward and smiling. Hibari returned her smile with an unimpressed look.

"How?" It was barely a question.

"I'm going to get a picture of you smiling," she concluded, stretching her arms and moving towards the car.

"I don't smile," he informed her blankly, moving towards his motorcycle. Seeing this, she raised an eyebrow.

"Ah? You're taking your bike?"

"Yes," he said, swinging a leg over and grabbing his helmet. "So I don't have to listen to you bugging me about this," he said, giving her a slightly annoyed look. Cloud laughed as Kusakabe got in the car, shaking his head lightly, used to these types of conversation. She ended her laugh with a sigh, dropping her hands from behind her head, and folding them causally.

"That's fair."

* * *

><p>"So," She said, coming in months later. He glanced over at her, putting his book down as she sat next to him on the couch. "I've been taking pictures."<p>

"I've noticed," he said, thinking over the past few months and the girl's constant camera clicking.

"And I've brought some here for you to have." He stared at her with a blunt expression. "Oh come on, Kyoya," she said lightly, pulling a small bundle out of her bag she had brought in. "If it makes you feel better, you weren't the only victim in this. Bel was easy to convince, and I'm pretty sure we took about fifty pictures between the two of us, but I got Squalo to take a picture with me too, and even Xanxus." He tried to hold back a slightly impressed look. She spread them out on the coffee table in front of them, and his eyes scanned over them.

"Ipin has this one," Cloud began, pointing to a picture of himself and the young girl, who was handing him a towel with a bright blush on her face. "She freaked out and said I shouldn't have taken it, but she kept the picture anyway. Dino has this one too, of course," she moved a picture closer to them, showing it to be Dino and himself, looking rather miffed seeing that the blonde was roughly throwing a shoulder over him and smiling widely. "There's a few of Kusakabe too, with Romario if he wants any," she continued, moving the select few to the side. Hibari's eyes narrowed, noticing two pictures in particular. He moved them closer, gently, studying them.

They were clearly taken seconds apart; both were of him and Cloud, her arm pulling him closer to her. One, her eyes were open, clear, bright, and she was caught in midlaugh with him staring over at her with slight annoyance, and much to his slight surprise, amusement. The other, her eyes were closed, and she had completed her laugh, now morphed into a brilliant smile.

"Ah, that's one where you're almost smiling," she pointed out, looking at the second of the two pictures. "But," she continued, moving on while he was still looking at the two, "this is my favorite." She reached over, then handed him the picture she had secured.

"Of course," she mused, "the only picture of you actually smiling is one I got when you were fighting Dino. You look happy here," she pointed out, handing him the picture.

"It's nice, isn't it," she asked softly, "being happy?" Not answering, he put the picture of himself down, his eyes shifting over to the picture of them, her happy, eyes bright, laughing.

Yes, he thought. It was.

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: Repercussions of Smoking<strong>

"You smoke?" He glanced over, taking in her concerned face.

"Only sometimes," he shrugged, moving his head to make it seem like he was looking out the open window, but watching her reaction the whole time. She bit her bottom lip, and brought her legs up; a sign of her discomfort, Bel knew. "You don't like it," he said bluntly.

"No," she said, much too quickly, which amused him. It was cute, he thought, that she didn't want to seem negative about his actions. "You can do what you want," she assured him. He narrowed his eyes, her own eyes lingering back to the cigarette in his mouth. He quickly took it out, and reached to the table beside him, bringing a decorative, shallow bowl towards him and rubbing the cigarette out.

"You shouldn't ha-"

"It was bothering you," he said simply, "and I can't have my princess be bothered, can I?"

"But, Bel-" He shushed her, holding a finger to his lips, then snickered.

"Ushishishi, just stay quiet, princess," he chided. "You're a lot cuter when you don't talk anyway." Her eye twitched out of annoyance.

"That wasn't an ash bowl," she said bluntly, causing his smile to drop. "It was a piece of art. An _expensive_ piece," she elaborated. A single bead of sweat rolled down his face, and a nervous grin appeared. She stared at him in disbelief.

"Mammon's going to _kill_ you when he fi-" He sprang forward, pressing his hand to her lips.

"He's not," he hissed, moving his face to close to hers, "going to find out." She gave him a blunt look.

"Who's not going to find out?" Mammon drawled, walking into the room causally. He looked between the two, the boy nearly on top of the girl with his hand over her mouth. "If you guys are going to do this sort of thing, do in privacy," Mammon complained. Cloud mumbled loudly under Belphegor's hand in denial, but the older boy grinned largely, and moved his other hand around the girl's waist, pulling her up and forcing her to walk with him.

"Of course, Mammon," he drawled, hiding his nervousness as Mammon continued walking, heading for a bookshelf next to the table where the bowl was sitting. "We'll be sure to take this somewhere _private_."

"Whatever," Mammon dismissed, "as long as I don't see it, I don't care."

Bel removed his hand from Cloud's mouth, but his arm remained around her waist, making sure she picked up speed with him, now that they were out of sight.

"He's going to find out," she reminded him, still slightly annoyed from Mammon's accusations.

"I'll be fine," he dismissed, "Ushishi, I'm a prince after all." A large killing intent erupted from behind them, and Bel grabbed the girl's hand, beginning to run through the hallways.

_"BELPHEGOR!"_

"A dead prince," Cloud corrected him, looking behind to see Mammon floating after them, only guessing at what horrifying illusions he was creating. "A really, _really_ dead prince."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

**EVERYONE GO TO MY PROFILE TO CHECK OUT THE AMAZING AND ADORABLE FANART THAT RUFINAASANO MADE! IT'S AWESOME AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH! **

I decided to add that memory as a side story, since there was no where I could put it in the chapter, and if I did, it would seem very out of place. Just a happy, cute little story. If you're interested, go to my profile and follow the link to check out a sketch I did of one of the pictures mentioned. I may do some of Cloud and Bel too, but I have to decide which one to sketch that I'm thinking of, because they would have so many cute pictures thanks to Bel-I-swear-I'm-not-a-model-phegor and Cloud the-camera-just-loves-me Chiavarone. Of course, these pictures include a play-by-play of them falling over on the couch and laughing. Also, bonus side story of Bel and Cloud because, why the hell not, this chapter is long enough any way. And for the BelxCloud shippers.

Moving on. THE FUTURE ARC IS FINALLY OVER OH MY GOD THANK YOU SO FUCKING MUCH, I JUST CAN'T EVEN. I hated writing that huge section of the final fight, because it was basically all straight out of the manga, since Cloud couldn't really do anything but watch. If you can't tell, I kind of hate the future arc. Well, I like all the arcs in KHR, it's just that the future arc is my least favorite. In order, favorite to least would be Rainbow/Representative arc, Varia Arc, Daily Life Arc, Shimon Arc, Mukuro Arc and Future Arc. Maybe a switch up between Shimon and Daily Life, since those are pretty equal to me.

Confession: I actually skipped over the future arc to catch up. Another confession, the only reason I got into KHR was thanks to Chrome, because where I read my manga, they showed a picture of the first page, and I saw Chrome and was interested (this was in the middle of the Shimon Arc, when she was being possessed by Daemon). So, naturally, I started reading right then and there, and was thusly and thoroughly confused. I thought that Yamamoto was Mukuro and that Chrome was in some Military outfit and that Emna was some Zombie thing. The only thing I got right was pegging Hibari as the cool, loner, asshole, which, of course meant that I fell in love with him right there. Ah, memories.

So, yeah, long chapter but I wanted to knock this out, and by knock out, I mean full coma and all, this arc is _gone_. I probably could have put this in at the most three chapters, but I did not want to put anyone through that, myself or you guys. AND I CAN FINALLY START THE ARCS I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR. Although, the next arc is more of a set-up for Cloud? Kind of like the Mukuro Arc was way back when. I may actually do the summer omake that's been sitting around half finished and planned out in my computer since it's a break between arcs, and you know, actually summer right now for me. But, then again, I said that I would do that a while ago, right? Also, the part with Fran pushing the wheelchair is something I do if I ever push anyone around, and thus, I am demoted from wheelchair pusher a lot.

**Review Responses:**

**Kksambo:** Cloud's selflessness is one of the most annoying aspects of her character to me, because I'm a rather selfish person myself, doing things for my sake. And then there's Cloud; the completely opposite. Which, is interesting to write and be in that mindset, especially from a first person POV. Ah, if you ship Bel and Cloud and Hibari and Cloud, then you should like this chapter. As for letting Bel and Cloud being together… only time will tell. Well, and me, since I'm the author, but I'mma blame time for this one. Thanks for the review!

**RufinaAsano:** Once again, thanks so much for the amazing art! I love them so much (I'm sure you're tired of hearing that from me, but it's true). I'm so glad you like Cloud so much, and consider her shippable! Thanks for the art and the review! You rock!

**RaNDoem:** I cannot wait until Fran comes back. And I, too, frequently jam to Shake it Off. It's on my play list of songs I listen to when cleaning my room, or something else that is always aided by dancing, groovy songs. Thanks for answering the question and for the review!

**Angelacorus**: Hey, you kind of got your wish there at the end! There's a little Yamamoto and Cloud in here, because he tend to be her shoulder to lean on when she needs it. I just realized that I kind of used him as that for the ending of the last two arcs. Welp. Thanks for the review!

**ddmahan922:** It's always fun writing Mukuro and Cloud. And thanks so much for saying you love her relationships with my writing! I'm blushing! Thanks for the review!

**Raven-V-Blackshade:** I'm glad you found humor in the Varia discovering Fran's note! Also, I'm glad you took an interest in Zhanna's story. She's an interesting character to write. Thanks for the review!

**TransparentAnswer:** Thanks for following for so long! This chapter's a little serious, but it gets cute at the end with Bel's little story! I've been hinting around at relationships, but not so much romantic as just showing them being close. Thanks for the review!

**Uniquemangalover:** THANKS YOU SO MUCH! I'LL BE SURE TO LOOK UP THE SONG! THANKS FOR ANSWERING THE QUESTION AND FOR THE REVIEW, AS ALWAYS!

**Xenocanaan:** Aw, you ship Cloud and Hibari! That's so sweet. Thanks for loving them, and for the review!

**VanillaMilkshake18:** Isn't Cloud always in deep shit? Thanks for reviewing!

**Hoshikasa:** I love that kid so much. I would adopt the frog…. You know, if he were real. Which he is not. Shame. Thanks for the review!

**Guest:**

**Mirbel:** That's a great idea! I totally see where you're coming from with the recaps, especially after long periods of times between updates (which unfortunately happens a lot. Whoops). I'll be sure to start that next chapter. Thanks for the suggestion, and the review!

**Question:**

**How did you first come across and get into KHR?**

I answered it up in my AN, if you want to see my response. Me going off on that tangent made me curious about your first experiences with KHR.

Sorry if there's any mistakes. I have zero more fucks to give about this arc.


	39. The Mechanics of Hide and Seek

**Chapter 39: The Mechanics of Hide and Seek**

**Summary (because someone asked, and it's a great idea since I can't update often):**

Right after Cloud's training with the Giegue, she was tricked into going to Namimori in order to be sent to the future. While there, she is repeatedly frustrated by the other's treatment of her and them constantly holding her back. She also learns that her future self took her own life in order to escape Byakuran's clutches. Cloud felt extremely useless and mulls on this fact while there and on her return to the past after Tsuna defeated Byakuran. Now back in her own timeline, Cloud has decided to find Dayita, the mysterious illusionist she met in the future. Meanwhile, after a discussion with the future Mukuro that has yet to be revealed, Hannah's demeanor has changed, something Cloud has yet to notice. While Cloud is reuniting with her loved ones from the present, Mukuro is left to deal with Hannah.

* * *

><p><strong>"There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other."<strong>

**-Douglas H. Everett**

* * *

><p>"I'm home!" I pushed open the door, startling Bono as I did so.<p>

"Princess," he greeted me with a smile, "you're back fro-"

"Bono!" I hurdled myself into him, almost causing him to fall back. I wrapped my arms tightly, and lifted him in my excitement without even thinking, causing a surprised yell from him. The others walking by gave us strange, but bemused looks. Word of my return would spread quickly, no doubt especially with this entrance I was making.

"Princess?" I almost dropped Bono when I saw Ivan approach, but managed to let the man's feet touch the ground before running to Ivan, who I embraced in a similar fashion.

"I missed you guys so much!" I told them, putting Ivan down as well, and looking happily between the two.

"You were only gone for a few weeks, Princess," Ivan said, rubbing his side. I laughed, shaking my head.

"It felt like a lifetime," I sighed, "ten years, to be exact." My attention went to Romario entering the room, walking down the stairs briskly. Ignoring the others confused expressions, I ran towards Romario with open arms, and he greeted me the same, picking me up and spinning me lightly.

"Welcome back, princess," Romario greeted me as he set me down, a knowing twinkle in his eye.

"Nice to see you young again," I teased lightly, gripping him once more.

"And here you are, exactly the same," he chortled.

"Cloud?" Romario released me as I looked up the stairs, recognizing the voice instantly. Dino looked down at me with wide eyes, his breath slightly labored. My bottom lip shook as I stepped away from Romario, unsure of what to do. He was right there, so close to me. _My_ brother.

"Hey," I said, chokingly. He grinned widely, something I felt like I haven't seen in _so long_.

"Hey!" He ran the rest of the way down the stairs and tackled me into a hug. I blinked, hesitating to wrap my arms around him as well, surprised by his enthusiasm. "Hey," he called, again, causing me to look up at him. "You okay, Cloud?" His brow creased, worry evident on his face. I blinked, my eyes already watery and put my head on his shoulder, squeezing him tightly.

"I am now," I choked out, "that I'm home." He smiled softly, and let me cry into his shoulder, my brother, not the empty shell I left behind in the future. This was my Dino.

"Welcome back, sis."

* * *

><p>"Did you ever feel scared?" I pursed my lips, thinking through the question.<p>

"A few times," I admitted, shifting slightly, and pushing myself up from leaning against the tree. "Like when I was alone in the beginning, with Byakuran," I recalled, the memory causing me to wrap my arms around my knees as I pulled them up. Dino frowned, and slung his arm around me, reminding me that he was there.

"He can't hurt you anymore," He reminded me. I looked away, almost guilty. I turned my head to smile at him, recovering quickly so he wouldn't notice.

"I was never really alone. I had others," I explained, "and they always helped me. But, I wasn't their Cloud," I sighed, looking back around the garden, "and there was no getting around that."

"Sorry about that." I shook my head, looking back at him with a sharp expression.

"It wasn't you," I reminded him. "That man wasn't you." I huffed and fell back, eventually leaning into Dino's shoulder.

"But it could have been," he argued, almost a musing.

"It won't be," I insisted, "I won't let you lose what he did."

"You?" He asked kindly.

"Everything," I corrected, thinking of what the others told me and how much the Dino of that future had lost.

"Even if I lose everything, Cloud," He told me, putting his arm around me, "the last thing I want to turn into is our father." I winced and would have pulled away if Dino's arm hadn't anchored me.

"You remember that?"

"He needed to hear it," Dino breathed out. I blinked and looked over at him. Sometimes I forgot that my father left demons to Dino as well.

"I'm just glad that I have my Dino back," I relented, closing my eyes blissfully. He laughed lightly.

"You really missed me that much, huh?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," I confirmed, "and Bel, Squalo, Lussaria... everyone. It wasn't the same."

"I'm glad you're back too," he cocked his head to the side," even though I didn't exactly know where you went. Did you complete training before you went to the future?"

"Hm?" I lifted my head, having completely forgotten about what I was doing before I went to the future. "Ah, that's right. The Giegue…" I trailed off, then smiled happily. "That went great," I confirmed, making a point to never, ever, tell Dino the exact methods I went through in order to get stronger. Something I still haven't truly tested out, I mentally noted.

"I'm glad to hear," he said, relieved, "I was worried when you first left, but then, you know… I remembered that I have to let you go sometimes, right?"

"But I need to let you know what I'm doing," I reminded him, smiling softly.

"That would be nice," he agreed, laughing lightly. I held up a pinkie.

"Honesty pact?" I offered, recalling our previous conversations about this exact topic.

"Honesty pact," he affirmed, nodding. We intertwined pinkies, and gave a firm shake.

* * *

><p>"Confirmation," I said, picking up one of the pictures scattered across my bed and holding it up to look at, "we remain hot in the future."<p>

_"Ushishi, naturally,"_ Bel snickered on the other end of the phone. _"You should expect no less from the prince. You already talk with your brother?"_

"Yep," I popped, repositioning the phone between my head and shoulder, moving on to another picture of us. "I'm just glad to have him back. I told him everything and even showed him Jian and Kashi," I relayed, looking over at animal rings on my nightstand, along with the three original rings my future-self had. The few other boxes I was given were sitting in a chair on the other side of the room, along with the jacket.

_"Box weapons, right?"_ Bel asked. I nodded, then realized that he couldn't see me.

"Yeah," I restated, out loud. I could just imagine him grinning, which caused me to smile as well.

_"Uhishsi, neat~ The prince wants to meet them."_

"And I want to see you too," I admitted, laying fully on the bed. "and the others too," I added, thinking of the rest of the Varia as I gazed at the ceiling, "but you have missions, right?" I could practically hear his frown as I reminded him of that small fact. He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

_"Fine. As soon as the prince is done, you have to visit me,"_ he ordered._ "Or, I could just visit you."_

"If you do, let Dino know at least," I sighed, knowing he'd get his way, _either_ way. "He doesn't like your little sneak-ins, which usually result in my sneak-outs."

_"Whatever,"_ Bel dismissed. _"Ah, duty calls. See ya, princess~"_ I rolled my eyes and snapped the phone shut, going back to sorting through the pictures I was given. I smiled softly, amused by the next picture I came across. A slightly older Zhanna glared back holding a ridiculously large weight with one arm and flicking the camera off with the other. My eyes narrowed, remembering something. I reached for my phone again, picture still in hand and stared at it while it rang.

"Zhanna?" I asked as soon as someone picked up, switching from Italian to Russian. "I need your help with something."

_"The fuck, not even a hello?"_ was the response on the other end,_ "your first conversation with me back from the future and this is the fucking thanks I get?"_ I opened my mouth to retaliate, then promptly closed it.

"You know about the future?" I questioned.

_"The brat gave me memories from my future self,"_ Zhanna explained dismissively. _"Glad to know I can still kick ass in the future though."_ I blinked, adjusting to this information, thinking back to Uni.

"Just you?" I asked.

_"Just me,"_ she confirmed, _"I told them what happened t-"_

_"Hi Cloud!"_ I winced and pulled my ear away from the phone. _"We miss you!"_ I sighed and waited patiently, hearing loud cursing and noises form the other end as Zhanna drove Shura and Sasha away.

_"Fucking little shits!"_ Zhanna yelled after them, then returned to the conversation._ "Now, what the hell did you want from me, little horse?"_ I hesitated before I continued, not sure whether or not I should ask her this, especially considering that she had her memories now. I sighed.

"Fuck it," I decided offhandedly before answering directly, "I need you to help me find Dayita." The answer was immediate.

_"Fuck no."_

"But, Zh-"

_"Fuck no,"_ she restated firmly. _"It would be a hella lot better if we never found her at all."_

"Zhanna I need her," I pleaded, "and I need you to help me find her. Can't your sister help?"

_"I'm not asking her to help me find that piece of shit,"_ Zhanna restated roughly. _"Look, I'm living a pretty much bitch-free life as it is would like to fucking keep it that way."_

"Zhanna, ple-"

_"Fuck no,"_ she repeated, ending the conversation. _"You're on your own for this one, little Chiavarone."_

* * *

><p>"She's not coming tonight," Hannah stated, opening her eyes to meet Mukuros.<p>

"Ah," he breathed out, a bit disappointed. "She must be too tired from her return. I suppose I won't be able to talk to her tonight, will I?" He turned to leave, but whipped around on the girl as she grabbed his sleeve. She fell on the ground at his sharp turn and immediately looked away from his stern gaze.

"You…" she started hesitantly, then found more confidence, "You won't tell her, will you?" He smiled menacingly, causing the girl's stomach to churn in guilt. The wind twirled with uncertainty, reflecting the girl's turmoil. However it was weaker, losing power.

"Won't tell her what, Hannah?" Mukuro sneered. "That you were the cause of her future self's downfall? That you're to blame for everything?" Hannah winced with every accusation, visibly losing color. Select flowers shivered in the garden, wilting slightly. Mukuro narrowed his eyes, then frowned, noting this.

"I'll keep this from Cloud for now," he allowed, looking down on her disdainfully. "My future-self was able to handle you," he warned as he turned away, not even looking back, at the girl, still kneeling on the ground in shame.

"You should hope I don't have to do the same."

* * *

><p>"Princess- gah!" Bono stepped away as Ivan fell back, nailed with a pillow to the face.<p>

"Ah…" they heard her voice mumble, "ungodly," she complained, Bono peeking in to see her covers shifting, her head popping out from the mass of pillows and covers, "waking me up at this hour."

"Princess," Bono said, smiling, having missed this part of her too, "it's eleven o'clock in the morning."

"Ungodly," she repeated, giving him a dirty look, pulling herself from her bed irritably, dragging a blanket with her. "I nailed him pretty hard," she noted, yawning as she went over to them, stepping out into the hallway. Ivan groaned, removing the pillow from his face and pushing himself up.

"Your aim," he grumbled, "has improved, princess."

"Thanks," she muttered dryly. "You're lucky you didn't try to wake me by shaking," she admitted, blinking slowly, "that would have been a lot worse, trust me. What do you guys need, anyway?" She asked. "You wouldn't wake me if it wasn't somewhat important."

"There's a…" Bono trailed off, as he looked down at Ivan for assistance.

"Package for you?" the other man tried, pushing himself up, and handing the pillow to her. "A gift?"

"A gift?" she repeated tiredly. She sighed, running a hand through her wild hair, rustled from sleep. "Well, whatever it is," she called, moving towards the kitchen, "can wait until I get some coffee."

* * *

><p>"I wasn't aware," Dino started, standing next to me as I held my coffee, not even drinking it at the moment, staring at the extravagant mass of flowers before us, "that you had any admirers I needed to worry about."<p>

"I don't," I said, blinking slowly, trying to take in all the flowers, "at least, I'm pretty sure I don't." My eyes narrowed, seeing movement towards the back. "Is there a person behind it?" I asked, taking a sip of my coffee and squinting.

"He delivered the flowers," Romario stated, moving up beside us, "and said he had a message."

"Miss Chiavarone?" a tall Indian man asked, peeking out from behind the flowers. I blinked, then realized he was addressing me. I nodded, and he smiled, moving up to us.

"I have a message for you, from Miss Dayita," he told me. Me and Dino glanced at each other surprised. He presented me with a dark red envelope, laced in perfume, judging from the smell. I took it almost hesitantly, handing my coffee to Romario first. The man then handed me another envelope, and bowed. "Miss Dayita sends her regards and will be expecting you. Thank you for your time," he nodded, then turned to leave.

"Wait!" Dino called out as I opened the first envelope, "What do you mean expecting?" My eyes scanned over the letter, mentally reading it in her voice.

"She wants me to come to see her," I informed my brother, scanning over flirtatious words and curvy handwriting, "in India. Said there was a plane ticket in the other envelope…?" I mumbled, rearranging the letters to open the second, seeing that yes, there was a plane ticket.

"India?" Dino repeated, frowning as he finished watching the man's car drive away before focusing back on me.

"I want to go," I said quickly, turning to him. He sighed, tilting his head, running a hand through his hair.

"It's the illusionist right?" He recalled, "From the future?" I nodded. "Can we trust her?"

"I think so," I stated, nodding slightly.

"… that's not reassuring, Cloud," Dino told me, his expression deadpanning.

"She saved my life multiple times," I reminded him, "and helped us a lot in the future. She wouldn't harm me, Dino," I convinced him. "And besides, I can take care of myself." He sighed once more, his hand dropping.

"Fine," he let out gruffly, finally coming to a decision. "You can go, but you have to keep in contact with me."

"Thanks, Dino," I said happily, linking arms with him and smiling warmly. He let out a chuckle, smiling back.

"Um, Boss," Romario addressed, calling our attention towards him, "where exactly are we going to put… this?" he asked, gesturing towards the ridiculous flowers. Dino sighed, rubbing the back of his head again.

"I guess we have to find a place for them…."

"All the flowers have romantic connotations," I noted, being reminded of her 'gift'.

"…. Should I be concerned?" Dino asked as we watched Bono and Ivan struggle to carry the large array of flowers in.

"…probably."

* * *

><p>"Ipin, I promise you," I said, smiling softly, "I'm completely fine." I paused, listening. "Yes, Master is too," I assured her, making a mental note to get in touch with him as well. "Everyone's fine, Ipin," I repeated, "I'm sure it was just a bad dream." I frowned, not wanting to lie to her. But, Reborn insisted. "I'll visit as soon as I can," I promised her warmly, having finally gotten her to calm down. "Love you too, mèi mei." I sighed sadly, leaning back in my seat, watching as other passengers boarded, walking past first class to get to their seats.<p>

"Was that really necessary, Reborn?" I asked once I knew that the hitman was back on the line.

_"She was too young to understand the memories of her older self, and naturally, panicked,"_ Reborn told me. _"It seems that the only thing she firmly grasped was your death and Fon's death."_

"Which are the worst things she could have grasped," I sighed, frowning. "I just don't like lying to her."

_"Some things are necessary, Cloud,"_ Reborn reminded me, unknowingly reassuring me of what I was travelling to deal with in the first place, and unknowingly giving me a bit more closure. _"She wouldn't stop crying until she spoke to you. Even Lambo and Mama couldn't get her to stop."_

"Well," I reasoned, "at least she feels better now. Ah," I noted, seeing the attendants coming through the aisle telling other to put phones away, "I have to go Reborn."

_"Going somewhere, Cloud?"_ Reborn asked curiously. I smiled, looking down at the red envelope in my hand.

"Just to see a new friend."

* * *

><p>Mukuro's eyes narrowed as he inspected the wilting flower between his fingers. A memory, he corrected himself, remembering his first encounter with these. His eyes slid to the girl beneath the tree, who was staring off blankly. She too, he noticed, was wilting. Her skin was much paler than before, and the color of her hair was dull. It was much more noticeable now, he realized, recalling his memories of the future, where she had first started to slowly lose her color. But now, it was leaving her at a much faster pace, so fast that the rightful owner of the mind had yet to notice it.<p>

How odd, he thought. This might have benefited him, if it were not for the wilting flowers, the memories disappearing. That, he decided, was a problem. But not one he wanted _her_ to know about, he decided, turning to the owner of the mind as she appeared. He was lucky, in fact, that she seemed to be preoccupied with something else. However, it was quite annoying that he did not know what that something was. Yet.

"Ah, Little Chiavarone," he greeted coolly, "Welcome back." She smiled up at him cutely, taking the hand he offered to pull her up.

"It's good to be back," she allowed, smiling up at him cutely. Sunlight warmed the area at a comfortable temperature, reacting to her mood as usually. However, he noted, her mind was beginning to favor Cloud much more often than Hannah now a days. Ever since his future self had that 'talk' with Hannah, if he recalled correctly. Curious.

"And now that you are back," Mukuro started, eyes only narrowing slightly as she greeted Hannah with a wave, noting the concerned look Cloud had on her face and quickly moving to distract her, "you can get to work on our little promise."

"Hm?" She glanced back over to him, blinking. "Ah, you mean, Chrome, yeah?"

"You haven't exactly done much to watch over her," he reminded the girl coyly. She huffed, and rolled her eyes, completely drawn into the conversation. A success on his part.

"Well, excuse me if I haven't exactly been around that much be her gal pal," Cloud retaliated. Mukuro smirked in mock amusement, keeping her focus on him as he set up small illusions around Hannah, making sure Cloud did not notice her too much. "If you haven't noticed, I've been busy being carted around in the future, treated like a sack of potatoes," she complained, sitting in the seat he provided her, bringing up a thrown for him as well.

"And what a pretty sack of potatoes you make," he teased lightly.

"Thanks," she said blandly, then sighed, "I haven't done much of anything, actually." She scrunched her nose. Her eyes wandered over to Hannah one again, but Mukuro's illusion covered her well, causing Cloud to see nothing more than what she expected. She blinked, confusion in her eyes, then looked back towards Mukuro, starting her sentence slowly.

"I'll go visit Chrome after I finish with…." she trailed off, realizing what she was about to say. Mukuro hummed thoughtfully.

"And what exactly are you finishing with, little Chiavarone?" Mukuro mused, interested. She was getting better, he noticed, holding back an annoyed frown, at hiding things from him, even in her own vulnerable mind.

"Nothing that you need to concern yourself with," she decided, crossing her arms and titling her head away from him. Mukuro narrowed his eyes and smiled dangerously.

"I don't like secrets, little Chiavarone," he reminded her, spinning his trident lightly, "especially ones I don't know."

"Trust me, Mukuro," she told him truthfully, shaking her head with a small bemused smile, "this is one secret you definitely wouldn't want in on."

* * *

><p>"You're kidding me," I muttered, almost shielding my face, looking away in embarrassment at the excessive sign bordered with large flowers that spelled my name in large, gold letters. "You've got to be kidding me," I repeated, embarrassed enough to shift myself away when the man, the same man who delivered the flowers, recognized me and walked over to me.<p>

"Ah, Miss Chiavarone!" He loudly called in Hindi (much to my dismay. I was positive Dayita was to blame for the man being so flamboyant in getting my attention), bowing slightly when he was at arms distance. "I see you've had a safe journey."

"Was the sign really necessary?" I asked, now able to look in his direction with the abomination not being held up high in the air.

"Miss Dayita was specific in her instructions," he told me.

"Of course she was," I sighed, rubbing my temples.

"If you would kindly walk this way, I'll lead you to the car," he smiled brightly. I simply blinked at him in response, which did nothing to deter his enthusiasm. "Your luggage can be picked up later by a different party," he explained as we walked.

"No need," I shook my head, shifting my backpack, "this is all I brought." He stopped, and looked back at me with a blank expression.

"That won't do at all," he tutted, shaking his head. "Miss Dayita won't like that… or rather, perhaps she will…" he trailed off deep in thought. I followed uneasily, looking at the other cars around us picking other people up from the airport, not knowing which car I was being lead to, and seriously hoping it was the limousine. Naturally, since the world hated me, or rather, Dayita did, it was.

"Ah! Forgive me for forgetting my manners," the man turned back to me as he opened one of the doors. "My name is Aja."

"Cloud," I nodded back as I slipped in, "but you already knew that."

"Miss Dayita is quite fond of you," Aja hummed happily, slipping in beside me.

"So I've gathered," I sighed, leaning back as the car began to move, my eyes edging towards the window. I had intents to take in the landscape since it was my first time in India. Aja handed me bottled water as he continued talking in a fond tone. I was barely listening as I took a sip, eyes still out the window. "I always enjoy escorting her dates and lovers when I'm able to; she always manages to attract the most interesting people." I choked on my water and began coughing and shaking my head.

"It's not what y-"

"The sister of the boss of the Chiavarone," Aja mused, hand on chin, looking out the window curiously. I stiffened and my eyes narrowed, his expression still happy, but his demeanor changed. "Although, she has wooed royalty before," he continued with a flick of his hand, "I believe there to have been a few princes and princesses, but never someone with such high connections in the mafia."

"We're not dating," I said coolly, regaining my composure and keeping it, "Dayita's a friend," I corrected, almost hesitating with the word.

"Ah?" His eyebrows raised, seeming genuinely surprised. "I suppose, after the flowers, I just assumed. And, you do fall under the miss's type." He looked over me once more, allowing me to realize how cold and calculating his eyes truly where; something he had hid behind his cheery attitude. "Shame. It could be beneficial for us, after all. And don't worry miss," he smiled, colder, "for your side as well. My boss has a large influence over Asia as well."

"You work for Dayita's mother," I guessed, recalling the illusionist herself telling me of her mother's organization.

"Second in command actually," he proudly revealed, his smile a bit more genuine. "I am very close to Chhaya's family, and keep them close to my heart in return. I owe them, after all," he admitted with a shrug, crossing his legs and looking back out the window. "I enjoy doing these things for the children," he admitted. "It's a nice break from my normal job, and what a dreary drag that is!" He finished with a chuckle, eyes flickering back over to me, noticing I was still alerted. He waved a hand lazily in the air.

"Forgive me for my earlier behavior," he apologized, dipping his head slightly. "I meant nothing by it. I tend to analyze these things. It's my duty to look for ways to expand our company, and your possible relationship with Miss Dayita is a lovely opportunity. And, as always, we have to research whoever visits the estate, for security reasons."

"It's fine," I dismissed, "your position just surprised me."

"Understandable," He allowed, a twinkle in his eyes, "I don't look like much do I?" I shook my head, causing his smile to drop.

"Hand to hand?" I guessed, tilting my head, then shook it, "no, not your go to. You use weapons. But still close-ranged, right?"

"Daggers," he affirmed, the twinkle back. "Good eye."

"Thanks," I sighed, noticing we were approaching a large gate, quite a ways from where we had moved away from a populated area. The estate itself was miles away from the nearest population. "I would be dead if I didn't know," I admitted, almost shivering recalling Colonello's quizzes, forcing me to have at least a well-educated guess at what an opponent's way of fighting was. Alik's training only strengthened that. Aja's pocket buzzed once before the man answered it.

"Miss Dayita specified," he spoke into the phone, "the visitor is not to be searched. Thank you." He snapped it close and sighed. "Giving security a headache, as usual," he sighed. I didn't have to ask who he was referencing, having guessed it easily enough, just knowing Dayita's personality.

"Snipers?" I asked, spotting a few on the way up the long driveway.

"Security," Aja replied. "We have many enemies."

"Noted," I said, not really paying attention anymore as we approached a ridiculously large and beautiful home. Somehow, it was befitting of Dayita. I sniffed the air as I stepped out, Aja holding the door for me.

"There's a lovely ocean view on the other side of the estate," Aja informed me, noting my actions. He motioned for me to follow him up the stairs. He continued talking as we walked through the house (if one could even call it that) as I trailed behind, trying not to gape. I mean, I grew up in a pretty impressive home, but this was ridiculous compared to the Chiavarone estate (So far, just walking through, I've already seen two open courtyards). However, with the mass of the house, it was almost eerie that we didn't meet anyone as we milled through. Coming from a home that was filled with Dino's men and others who helped around the house, it was strange and almost unnerving to be walking in a place of this size and be utterly alone. I felt small.

"Much of the design was based off the Raj Palace Hotel," Aja continued with monologue of the architectural facts of the house as we walked on, "particularly, the Shahi Mahal Suite. Chhaya is a fan of a multitude of colors, and of course, wanted her children to grow up in a vibrant environment, as well as one filled with culture. Because of this, and through her work, she has collected a fine multitude of art in this home, most of which cost more than your life," he said, looking back at me.

"I'm guessing you're not kidding?" I said, making a point to step away from a vase I happened to be standing by.

"Unfortunately not."

"And you said _this_ home?" I asked again, "Which means there are more?"

"Chhaya owns multiple houses all over the world, naturally," Aja explained, "This house, however, is where she was raised, and likewise, her children were raised, and now live. Currently, Chhaya is not here but I am leaving to pick her up from America…" he trailed off, raising his wrist and looking at his watch, "about now would be the appropriate time. Miss Dayita should be waiting for you in the next lounge area. Continue ahead until you see a large opening on your right with red drapes." He bowed slightly, and I nodded back.

"A pleasure, miss Chiavarone. I am to assume I will see you again when we return."

"Thank you for escorting me, Aja," I bid, dipping my head in acknowledgement.

"Until then," he nodded with a smile, genuine this time, and turned on his heel. I watched his figure until it was out of sight and around a corner, not standing for long, still finding the lack of people disturbing. Following his directions, I continued down the hall, noting the doorways and openings until I came across one with red drapes obscuring the entrance, just as Aja described. Without hesitation, I lifted the drape and stepped into the room. I blinked, taking in the multitude of colors, looking around at the pleasant, and comfortable room, covered in pillows and drapes layering the windows, tinting the light filtering through, giving the room a warm atmosphere. My eyes landed on a familiar, yet younger figure, laid out on large pillows sitting opposite of the entrance. She smiled coyly, her eyes, ambered in the light, practically shining with amusement.

"Cloud Chiavarone," Dayita cooed, "how I have missed that face. I take it that you received the flowers?" She asked, motioning for me to join her on the pillows. "Lovely, weren't they? I picked them out myself, from the gardens here."

"How kind of you," I teased, already feeling familiar with her once more. She sighed happily, almost starling me when she cupped my face after sitting down. She gazed at me longingly.

"Just as beautiful as the memories," she clucked, smiling beautifully. Even in her teens, she held the beauty of a woman, I noted, now closer to her. Youth suited her just as much as age, but I assumed that she would always be beautiful, no matter how old. She was just one of those people. Other than the obvious age, there were few differences in her appearance, compared to her future self; she had less piercings for one. Only one was in her nose and she had yet to get her eyebrow pierced. Also, I noticed the lack of hell rings on her fingers, but that didn't mean she didn't have them at this time. Much of Dayita was still a mystery to me, after all, no matter how comfortable I had become with her in such a short period of time.

"Darling," she cried, releasing my face, and leaning back on the pillows, repositioning the shawl around her shoulders, "now that we're reunited, and your at least near my age, would enjoy a night of romance with me? Dinner perhaps?" she waved her hand. "We can go out if you want, there are many lovely places in town."

"I'm not here for a date, Yita," I reprimanded her, having expected this.

"Shame," she tutted, not looking the least bit saddened. "I go through all the trouble to find you just for a no."

"You knew that when looking for me," I reminded her, knowingly. She shrugged, laughing, her shoulders rolling back in amusement.

"Can't hurt to try," she guessed, sitting up suddenly and grabbing my hands, pulling me forward. "But, I'm so delighted that you came looking for me. Just the thought of you caring so much about me makes me absolutely _joyous_. I have you to thanks for many things, after all," she admitted with a brilliant smile, "Without the memories I received from my future self, I would never have gotten my hell ring so quickly," she revealed with a flick of her hair.

"You already found your hell ring?" I asked, impressed she had managed that in so little time.

"Naturally," she scoffed, almost offended that I had doubted her. "I had to get if before Mukuro," she said his name with a sneer, "and the man was no match for me. I didn't even have to use mother's ring. Not only that," she moved on, "but with the information I gave Varick, he's already working on box weapons."

"You're bother, yeah?" I asked. Her eyes lit up, and she gripped my hands tighter, becoming excited.

"Ah! He's going to absolutely die now that you're here! You absolutely have to meet him!" She squealed in delight, practically bouncing. I leaned back, the sudden change frightening me slightly. "After I showed him my memories of you with illusions, he's become enamored with your flames," she informed me. I frowned, recalling another certain, green-haired scientist who held a fascination for my flames.

"My flames?" I repeated, my attitude becoming reserved. Dayita immediately picked up on this.

"There's no need to worry," she dismissed, waving her hand with a soft smile. "If Varick does anything to make you the least bit uncomfortable, he knows he'll have to deal with me," her smile became dark, and for a moment, I felt slightly sorry for her sibling. "And besides," her demeanor changed immediately, " he's practically your biggest fan. He'd be mortified if he insulted you in anyway." I raised an eyebrow, not knowing how to respond to that.

"Okay?" I tried.

"Oh, but I'm getting off topic!" Dayita clapped her hands together, remembering. "You said you need something for me, yes?"

"Yeah," I said, shifting my body. I took a deep breath, preparing myself for this conversation, knowing that I needed to make this clear before I continued. "But I need to ask you something first; full disclosure." Dayita's eyes narrowed slightly, noting the serious tone I took on. She smiled softly and caressed my hands once more.

"Of course," she nodded.

"Are you okay with me using you?" I asked seriously. Her eyes narrowed and she pursed her lips, releasing my hands gently. Her playfulness diminished completely and she took on an attitude I had never seen her in before.

"In what way?" she asked blankly, completely devoid of emotion. Her features turned stone, cold even. I mirrored this, not used to this Dayita. This was new to me.

"You're the only one who'll let me do what I want, without questions asked," I explained clearly. "I need you to do this for me without expecting anything in return."

"Well that's idiotic, isn't it?" she asked harshly, eyes sharp. "We both know that's not how it works. I do a favor for you, you do one for me. That's," she stated intertwining her finger and smiling, "how the world works. You know this."

"And when that time comes when you need a favor," I agreed, "I'll do it with no questions asked, the same luxury you'll give me."

"Then we've reached an understanding," she concluded, her eyes lighting up, returning to the Dayita I knew.

"So," I asked, making sure one last time, "you're okay with me using you?"

"As long as you're find with me using you," she reminded me with playful eyes.

"I can deal with that," I admitted, nodding, determined.

"Now, Cloud," she began, leaning forward in a seductive manner, batting her thick lids, "what is it that I can do for you?" I sighed, running a hand through my hair, asking myself the same question that I've been asking myself ever since I got back from the future. Do I really want to find this person? I nodded, answering my own question. Yes, I do. I need that closure. I need the comfort this person can provide. I turned my head back to look at Dayita, assured now.

"I need you to find someone."

* * *

><p><strong>Side Story: She Gets What She Wants<strong>

Dayita had always been an observant child. In contrast to her brother, who actively investigated and tinkered and such, the girl had always been content to watch, learn, intake, before ever interacting, if she did at all. Even when she did participate, it was in a rather inactive way, where she would never be in the midst of conflict. She lingered, on the outskirts, making others do work for her, daintily manipulating, inflicting charm, but never fighting. Dayita did not fight.

She conquered. She never stepped into a battle that she could not win, that she could not dominate. She didn't fight, she played, she tinkered, much in the likes of her brother, but instead of his machines and weapons, she found her playthings in the form of people, the living, the ones whose emotions and goals and ambitions she found so interesting, so dull, so _charming_. She adored people, her playthings, her entertainment, and found them so simple, and yet on the brink of complexity. Some, she found, much to her delight, when beyond that simplicity. She enjoyed those few, if not annoyed with them. There was a fine line.

Cloud Chiavarone was one who passed that brink. And although angered by the fact that Dayita could not enchant her with her visions, she found the girl to be endearing, bright. A healer by heart, a fighter for others, a true martyr. Everything Dayita was not. And seeing this, recognizing this, wanting this, made Cloud so much more interesting to her. So much more valuable. The fact that the girl blindly trust Dayita (but perhaps trust is too strong of a word; she does not trust Dayita, and rightly so, but that reliance is there, it remains, but is far from trust) creates another fascination for Dayita. She was beautiful in her words, her actions, and of course, in physical appearances as well, being an added bonus. Yes, Dayita enjoyed Cloud Chiavarone. One her favorites.

Hibari Kyoya was another story. Although he excels simplicity, the irritation associated him is overbearing for Dayita. True, she enjoys poking fun at him every once and a while (the truth of that statement being much more often than the statement implies), but there is always that doubt, that line, that if she truly does cross it one day, could she truly defend herself? As much despise there is between them, she recognizes his endless potential, his unlimited strength, growth, and she sometimes, very rarely, wonders if she can win, if she can conquer him, if needed, if provoked, if defending. Of course, this is something she'll never admit to; Dayita does not doubt herself, her abilities, even in the abyss of her own mind. Even so, she is mindful to not cross this line with him, but continues to dance around it, on the edge. Always on the edge.

She viewed the strongest member of the Giegue family in a similar fashion, but perhaps held her in a more cautionary grasp. Hibari kept a marvelous temper compared to Zhanna, and at least, with him, he showed signs of his irritation. The Russian however showed no such signs, and seemed to be in a constant state of irascibility. This lead to Dayita not being able to tell when Zhanna would snap. And this lead to her annoyance, naturally. Although, the play is fun for the little time it lasts. And what little time that is.

Mukuro Rokudo, she found, was much too similar to herself to like. If there was something she hated most, if seeing herself in others. It was dangerous, and made them an adversary; a problem, an irritation. Dayita saw much of herself in Mukuro, as well as seeing a lot of himself in her. Something else, she did not enjoy dwelling on.

Looking down on others is a familiar concept to Dayita. A queen, a deity, tyrant, ruler; call her what you will, but she is aware of her place above others. Which, is why she's surprised, aroused even, when she meets someone's eyes to find that they are on the same level. Perhaps they are not aware of their height (like a green eyed girl she was so fond of), or perhaps they were well aware of their standing, their strength, but Dayita would be a fool not to acknowledge them. She created illusions, yes, vibrant vision, enchanting others, enveloping them, dulling them, blinding them, but she has never disillusioned herself. Dayita was no fool. No, she told herself nothing but the truth, knowing it be unwise to not to. She was an illusionist, after all. One the best. She knows how dangerous illusions can be.

She's aware of her keen fascinations, these sprees of inspiration where she is taken with people, only to grow bored, playing with her toys. She had possessed so many, after all. But Dayita liked owning things. She was especially sharp on surrounding herself with beautiful, pretty, bright things. Being shallow was the least of her flaws, and she was content with admitting that. With these sprees, however, follows a lull, a time when she realizes that the object she held with such desire, such want, no longer attains its lust, its appeal. It becomes boring, she realizes, with much distaste, and so it is abandoned. She moves on, as she always does, constantly moving, constantly searching, constantly entertained. The fault for this, is not on Dayita. It is to others advantage that they continue to entertain her, to be relevant, so they are not dropped, thrown away. It is to their own ability that they continue to favor her, because Dayita herself, definitely makes no move to pursue them. She doesn't pursue, after all. She doesn't chase.

At least, not often.

There have been times where her hand has been forced, where her interest is peeked, and she is the one chasing. How so, very few times that it. But in those few times, in these chases, Dayita is confident, cool, for she knows very well, that she will catch her prize, another pretty darling to add to her collection. Because although she may pursue in the chase, she knows one fact that has never been wronged, whether in battles, illusions, words, arguments, negations. To call her spoiled because of this is absurd. She deserves her things, her toys, and she works relentlessly to get them, no matter how much she must try.

Dayita always gets what she wants. Always.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

I have so many Steven Universe feels! Auuuuuuugghgggh. Guys, I can't even, these Steven Bombs had MURDERED me.

Ahem. Anyways. Aye, I'm back. Ahaha. My summer has been packed full and this is my first free day since...? I don't even know when? I've had two camps, and a bunch of my friends are leaving for college, so I've either been at camp, been out with friends, at a party, been at the hospital for family reasons or painting. But, now school is starting this week, and I just have a few more meetings with friends, and today I had time to return to this! Yay! I'm finally able to start the Hannah-arc too, and WE'RE CLOSER TO MY FAVORITE ARC THE RAINBOW/REPRESENTATIVE ARC HELLLL YEEEAAAHHHH!

This chapter is a bit shorter than usual, but if I continued there wouldn't really be a good stopping point? Next chapter will knock out Shimon arc, since it's hella short. Keep in mind, while this is going on, Tsuna's meeting Emna and the gang. This is more exposition? There will be a lot of talking next chapter and explanation. On what though is the question, ohohohoho?!

Also, here's a little Dayita story, to help get into her head. Dayita's character is one of my favorites to write, along with Mukuro's (I just love characters like them). Speaking of the pinapple, I'm excited for next chapter with him, because one of my notes is 'Think of Yzma in the jungle in the movie The Emperor's New Groove' when referencing to a scene with Mukuro. So yeah, that will be fun.

Hope I did an okay summary, I didn't really know what to put? I'm going to try to put information relevant to the chapter. But the Summary was a great idea, since I'm so _great_ at updating regularly. haha!

Bruh, I'm really tired right now, so these responses should be fun.

**Reviews:**

**Sky Lime:** Thanks for thinking my story's awesome! You're awesome!

**Grizzmon: **Bruh. Thanks for all the reviews!

**Lady Syndra:** Nope! This story is not complete! Thanks for the review and here's the next chapter!

**Wyrvel:** Eeeeeeh! I'm so glad you like it so much! I just love getting paragraph reviews like yours. It gives me life. As for Cloud's participation, she'll definitely get more involved soon, wink wink. And yeah, I agree 100 percent that I could have done so much more to the plot than I did, and that almost all the conflict is eternal. This story is extremely choppy because I visit it during different intervals in my life and have just long gaps in between updates. Which is why I'm trying to pick it up in the last few arcs and go all out. Which is why I've been waiting for so long for these arcs. I'm glad you like Dayita so much, though! I could definitely write a whole series about her kicking ass. Thanks for the lovely review!

**xPoisonedBlueRose13x:** Aw, I'm glad you like the side stories! I'm also very honored that you decided to review my story. Thanks so much!

**uniquemangalover:** MY FIRST KHR FANFIC WAS AN ADORABLE READER X YAMAMOTO FIC AND IT JUST ALL WENT DOWN HILL FROM THERE. THANKS FOR REVIEWING AND ANSWERING THE QUESTION!

**RaNDoem:** Yay! You get more Dayita in this chapter. Ah, that's interesting that you got into KHR through youtube! I'm a sucker for amvs as well, so it's for the review and answering the question!

**RufinaAsano:** Art update: I still love them. Hoped you liked this chapter! I'm glad you got into KHR too! Thanks for the review lovely!

**ddmahan922:** Bruh. Bel and Cloud getting 'the talk' together would be hilarious. The reason why? Squalo would be the one to give it (because there was no way they would allow Lussaria too, no fucking way, not since the time he tried to use props) and he would be so fucking awkward trying to do it. And, of course, Bel and Cloud would just sit there, awkwardly watching him, and he would yell at them every time they would try to inform him that, hey, we already know all this shit, but no, he would yell at them that this was important and continue failing at giving them 'the talk'. So, yes, that would be fucking hilarious. Thanks for the review!

**VanillaMilkshake18:** Excuse you, I do very much care about how Bel's laugh reminds you of cows. I'm offended that you would think I wouldn't. And Cloud does has a secret lover. Spoiler: it's Dayita. She sent flowers and everything so that makes it official. I love Cloud being all lovey with the Varia, especially Squalo since he has no fucking clue how to handle it. And I'm glad that you found KHR so that you found me, my child.

I'm pretty sure I found all my obsessions pretty much on my own? I'm primarily the friend that drags others down into obsessions with me. And yes, Mukuro's another that I love messing with feelings wise, although he's much more adept at handling not knowing how to handle feelings than Squalo, who's main solution is to yell louder. Ah, classic Squalo. Thanks for the review!

**spicyrash:** Yeah, as Cloud said in this chapter, she was basically carted around like a sack of potatoes. Yay! Thanks for the review!

**xenocanaan:** Bruuuuuuuhhh, I cannot wait for Fran to come back in. Thanks for the review!

**TransparentAnswer:** Aw, I can't wait for Cloud to meet Emna too! He's such an adorable little cinnamon roll. Thanks for the review and answering the question!

**Guest Reviews:**

**Guest (chapter 1): **Here's an update! Aw, thanks for shipping! Your package has been received and noted by the author. Thanks for choosing FedEx.

**EXTREEEEEEEEME:** HOW EXTREMELY NICE OF YOU TO REVIEW! I EXTREMELY APPRECIATE YOUR LOVE!

**Question: **

**How did you first come across my story and what made you stick with it?**

I'm curious. Did you just see it and give it a chance? Was it on someone favorites list, did someone recommend it, ect? Since I can't really answer, I'll try to tell what started it all:

I actually don't remember exactly when or what inspired me to make this fic? There was a hella long break when I came back to this and started forming more of a plot and future plans, but I only really rmember one early scene that was really vivid and inspired me because, frankly, it was ridiculous and still makes me laugh. It's the scene where Cloud jumped from off the roof and into the tree, and Hibari followed, way back when they had just met. Although, it had changed from the original scene I imgained. First off, I'm pretty sure Hibari jus chased her into the tree, she still threw her shoe at him, and there's a conversation that went like this:

"Get down here, herbivore."

"Nah, I think I'm just going to chill up here, hang with the squirrels, become friends, join their ranks. You know, at least they won't bite me to death, so I think this plan is a win on my part."

Or, you know something along those lines.

**AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS, FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES!**

-Klu

EDIT:

Okay, on a whim, I closed the old poll and opened up a new one. This new one is who is your favorite OC (excluding Cloud) and he winner of that poll will have a story written about them. The topic/plot of that story is pretty much open for suggestions, unless I have an idea and I run with it. Another good way to look at this is which character you want to know more about. It could be a humorous story, or as usual, and angsty one. You guys pretty much decide. So, if interested, go to my profile and check it out!

As for the results of the recent poll, Bel came in first, Hibari second and Mukuro in third. Mukuro, truthfully, scared me a while in the beginning, since he was first for an alarmingly long time? I didn't know there were that many peeps who shipped them, actually, so that startled me.

Thanks for voting!


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